TNM fact check: Tumakuru medical officers did not pretend to take the vaccine

Fake News

Videos of Dr Rajani and Dr Nagendrappa posing for photos to show they had taken the vaccine went viral on social media.

TNM Staff

A viral message along with two videos claiming to be that of Tumakuru health officials “pretending” to take doses of the vaccine went viral on Thursday. This message, however, has been ascertained as fake and misleading, Tumakuru Deputy Commissioner Dr Rakesh Kumar said. The videos he is referring to are of Dr Rajani and Dr Nagendrappa posing for photos as though they are being administered a dose of vaccine. In the first video, the Principal of the Government Medical College in Karnataka’s Tumakuru, Dr Rajani, can be seen sitting on a chair, while a nurse with a shot of the vaccine is about to dose her with it. However, after a few seconds, Dr Rajani is seen, pushing the nurse’s hand away and (is) not administered the dose. The video went viral on WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook, along with a message that read, “Tumakuru Government Medical College Principal and admin acted as though she got the vaccine.” Watch: Video of Tumakuru government medical college Principal posing for photo op  In the second video, Tumakuru District Health Officer Dr Nagendrappa too can be seen posing for pictures of him taking the vaccine. The nurse, who holds the syringe ner his bicep, withdraws it immediately after the photos are taken. This video too was circulated with the message that the DHO had pretended to take the vaccine. Dr Nagendrappa told TNM that the video was taken for the benefit of the press as visuals of the district officials being vaccinated were not shot earlier. “This is not true at all. I found out about this when people began demanding our resignation. We did not do anything wrong,” he said. Watch: Video of Tumakuru DHO posing for photo op of vaccine being administered  Dr Rajani and Dr Nagendrappa were among the first few frontline workers in Tumakuru to be administered the first dose of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin on January 16.  Speaking to TNM, Tumakuru Deputy Commissioner Dr Rakesh Kumar said that the message that Dr Rajani was “pretending” to take the vaccine is blatantly false.  “This is clearly a misunderstanding. Dr Rajani had been given the first dose of the vaccine on January 16. The press reporters had not got visuals of the vaccine being injected and asked her to pose for the pictures, which is what she did. She was not pretending to take the vaccine,” Tumakuru DC, Dr Rakesh Kumar said.  Local television channel reporters too confirmed to TNM that Dr Rajani had posed for the pictures and the video upon their request. 

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VK Sasikala shifted to Bengaluru’s Victoria Hospital

Health

Doctors, who treated her at Bowring Hospital said that her condition was stable at the time of discharge.

TNM Staff

Former AIADMK general secretary VK Sasikala was on Thursday discharged from Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru and shifted to another hospital. VK Sasikala was taken to the Victoria Hospital on Thursday afternoon by the authorities of the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.  “She has been shifted to Victoria Hospital because the police informed us that it is the designated hospital to treat convicts lodged in Parappana Agrahara Central Prison,” said Dr Manoj Kumar HV, Dean and Director of Bowing and Lady Curzon Hospital. Doctors at Victoria Hospital said that a CT Scan of her chest is being performed. “It is protocol to conduct the CT Scan of patients with SARI. The equipment at Bowring was not functional which is why she was brought to Victoria Hospital, Dr Ramesh Krishna K said.  The close associate of late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, fell ill three days ago, whilst she was serving her prison sentence at the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison. She was shifted to Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital on Wednesday after she suffered breathlessness. Doctors at Bowring said that she had a fever and was treated for it at the prison hospital. When she was brought into the hospital on Wednesday, her oxygen levels had dropped to 79%.  She was shifted to the Intensive Care Unit on Thursday, where she was put on oxygen support. Dr Manoj had told TNM earlier on Thursday morning that she was shifted for observation and that her condition is stable. Both her RT-PCR and Rapid Antigen tests turned negative for the novel coronavirus infections. However, the doctors treating her said that she has Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI).  Sasikala is supposed to be released from the Karnataka prison on January 27, a few months before the Tamil Nadu state Assembly elections. The process leading up to her release from jail is being watched by her supporters and adversaries as many expect a shift in the political landscape of Tamil Nadu after her release. TNM had earlier reported that Sasikala is likely to stay with her family in Chennai’s T Nagar area after her release. She had stayed with her niece Krishnapriya even when she had come out on parole earlier. Watch: VK Sasikala being discharged from Bowring Hospital, taken to Victoria Hospital

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Puppy Krish becomes first Mudhol Hound to join Karnataka police

Animals

The one-and-a-half-month-old pup that has been welcomed into Bagalkot Police’s canine squad on a pilot basis.

Sanjana Deshpande

Twitter/Bagalkot Police

The Bagalkot police on Tuesday inducted a locally bred puppy in their canine squad. The one-and-a-half-month-old canine named Krish is a Mudhol Hound that has been welcomed into the group on a pilot basis by Superintendent of Police Lokesh Jagalasar. The Bagalkot Police thus became the first police force in the state to initiate ‘desi’ hounds into their team. The canine squad of the Bagalkot Police has five dogs. The pup has been adopted by the police department after they recently decommissioned their Labrador named Hero who has since then been sent to the state-run dog shelter. “The suggestion was made to the Director General and the Inspector General of the police force to include the canine in our team. We had for long thought of welcoming a locally bred canine into the squad and with the permission from the superiors, we inducted Krish,” said Superintendent of Police, Lokesh. He added that Krish will be used as a sniffer dog. It will be working for another month and a half before being sent off to the Police Dog Training Centre where Krish will be trained for the job. According to the SP, the duration of the training will last from six to eight months depending on how Krish performs. Subsequently, based on the reports of his performance, the Karnataka State Police Department will consider inducting more locally bred dogs including Mudhol Hounds in canine squads of other districts across the state. The SP said, “We have adopted the pup from Canine Research and Information Centre, located in Thimmapur near Mudhol in Bagalkot. It was their suggestion that we experiment by initiating a Mudhol Hound into the team. We always used German Shepherds, Dobermans, Labradors because it is imperative that the dogs we have in the squad have a strong sense of smell. The research centre and veterinarians said that the hounds have a strong sense of smell which also was one of the reasons why we adopted Krish.” He further added that the canine’s performance will closely be assessed and upon learning of his strengths and weaknesses, Krish will further be used in corresponding roles after training.

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Over 55% of registered Karnataka healthcare workers vaccinated

COVID-19 vaccine

Of 62,772 beneficiaries registered the vaccine has been administered to 34,583 as on Wednesday.

IANS

Picxy / Kunal Mahto

Around 55 per cent or 34,583 healthcare warriors were vaccinated across Karnataka on the fifth day of the drive, said the state health bulletin on Wednesday. "Of the 62,772 beneficiaries registered for the vaccine, 34,583 took the shot across the state, accounting for 55 per cent of the target for the day," said the bulletin. Chikkamagaluru registered highest number (517) of receivers against 708 targetted beneficiaries, while Chitradurga had lowest number (1,033) of receivers as against 3,632 targetted, accounting for 28 per cent. In Bengaluru, of the 7,420 warriors registered for the dose, 3,443 took the jab, accounting for 46 per cent of the targetted. Meanwhile, 501 new cases were registered on Tuesday, taking the state's Covid tally to 9,33,578, including 7,697 active cases, while recoveries rose to 9,13,677, with 665 discharged on Wednesday. With only 4 succumbing to the infection, including 2 in Bengaluru and 1 each in Dakshina Kannada and Mandya districts, the state's death toll increased to 12,185 since the pandemic broke on March 8 last year. Bengaluru reported 260 fresh cases on Wednesday, taking its Covid-19 tally to 3,95,769, including 5,136 active cases, while recoveries rose to 3,86,260, with 303 discharged in the last 24 hours. Of the 168 patients in the intensive care units (ICUs) across the state, 74 are in Bengaluru hospitals, 12 in Mandya and 10 in Kalaburagi district. Out of 84,090 tests conducted in the day, 7,448 were through rapid-antigen detection and 76,642 through RT-PCR method. "Positivity rate for the day was 0.59 per cent and case fatality rate was 0.79 per cent across the southern state," added the bulletin.

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Workers who contract COVID-19 eligible for paid leave: Karnataka govt

Coronavirus

The state has issued a Government Order (GO) that applies to employees in the organised and unorganised sectors.

TNM Staff

IMAGE FOR REPRESENTATION

The Karnataka state government on Wednesday told the High Court that employees in the organised and unorganised sector who contracted coronavirus and those in direct contact with people who were infected, are eligible for paid leave during their isolation period. The order was issued on January 18 by Chief Secretary  P Ravi Kumar, who is also the chairman of the State Executive Committee formed under the Disaster Management Act. The order is applicable from when the lockdown was introduced. This order was issued as a means to ensure that employees stayed in isolation if they were infected and reduced the number of coronavirus cases in the state. The labour department was directed to ensure the proper implementation of this order. In August 2020, the Karnataka High Court asked the state government to respond to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the All India Traders Union Congress which requested paid quarantine leave for employees working in factories and other establishments if they contract coronavirus. The petitioner stated that the workers were finding it difficult because the isolation period was being treated as “unauthorised absence” and the government needed to introduce a standard of procedure regarding this situation. A bench headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka disposed of this PIL after the order was taken on record, a Times of India report stated. Around 9.33 lakh cases of coronavirus have been reported in the state, which includes 9.13 lakh discharges and 12,185 deaths, according to the Health Department. There are 7,697 active cases in the state out of which 7,529 patients are stable while the remaining 162 are in Intensive Care Units. Around 1 lakh people received the coronavirus vaccine in Karnataka as of January 20, which covers 55% of the targeted population.

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Karnataka cabinet reshuffle: Nirani gets Mining and MTB Nagaraju is Excise minister

Politics

Here is a list of the reallocated portfolios.

TNM Staff

Facebook

The Karnataka cabinet portfolios were reshuffled late on Wednesday night, and received Governor Vajubhai Vala’s nod on Thursday morning. Several prominent portfolios have been juggled to make way for the seven newly-inducted ministers in Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s cabinet. Yediyurappa, however, has retained the coveted Bengaluru Development Ministry.  Yediyrappa’s closest friend and Hukkeri MLA Umesh Katti has been allocated the Food and Civil Supplies portfolio, formerly under Mahalakshmi Layout MLA K Gopalaiah, who has now been allocated the Horticulture Development, Sugarcane Development and Directorate of Sugars. The Sugar Ministry was earlier headed by Arabail Shivaram Hebbar, who will now only retain the Labour Ministry.  The Fisheries portfolio has been reallocated to Sullia MLA S Angara. The portfolio was earlier with Kota Srinivas Poojary, who will now head the Ministries of Muzrai, and Backward Classes Welfare. The Backward Classes Welfare Portfolio was earlier held by BS Yediyurappa.  Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai has been given an additional portfolio of Law and Parliamentary Affairs, which was previously handled by Chikkanayakanahalli MLA JC Madhuswamy. He will now be the Minister for Medical Education.  Dr K Sudhakar, who previously had the Medical Education, will now only be the Minister of Health and Family Welfare. CC Patil, one of the BJP MLAs caught watching porn in the Assembly in 2012, has been made the Minister for Small Scale Industries and Information and Public Relations. He earlier held the Mines and Geology portfolio, which has been reallocated to MLA from Bilgi and sugar baron Murugesh Rudrappa Nirani.  The BJP government had come under fire after it had allocated the Forest portfolio to mining baron and Ballari MLA Anand Singh. The Forest Ministry has now been allocated to Mahadevapura MLA Aravind Limbavalli. Anand Singh will be the Minister for Tourism, Environment and Ecology.  Karnataka’s richest politician, MTB Nagaraju, with declared assets amounting to Rs 1,220 crore, has been made the Minister for Excise. This was previously headed by Independent MLA from Mulbagal, H Nagesh, who stepped down as the minister. CP Yogeeshwar is now the Minister of the Minor Irrigation Department. R Shankar alias Pendulum Shankar is the Minister for Municipal Administration and Sericulture. The Haj and Wakf Ministry has been reallocated to KR Pete MLA Narayana Gowda. It was earlier headed by incumbent Minister for Animal Husbandry Prabhu Chauhan. 

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Ragini Dwivedi gets bail from Supreme Court in Sandalwood drug case

SANDALWOOD

Ragini Dwivedi’s counsel argued that she was kept in jail for over 100 days even though no drugs were found in her possession.

TNM Staff

PTI

The Supreme Court on Thursday granted bail to Kannada actor Ragini Dwivedi, who was arrested in the Sandalwood drug case. Ragini has been in custody since September and in November, the Karnataka HC had dismissed her bail plea. But the apex court bench headed by Justice Rohinton F Nariman has set aside this order now, reported Live Law. Keeping aside the Karnataka HC order, SC bench stated that “though Petitioner has been found violating certain sections of (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) NDPS Act, prima facie if anyone offence has been made out, it can be said to be made out under Section 27(b) for consumption of certain drugs.” Advocate Sidharth Luthra, who appeared for the actor, stated to SC that the actor had been in custody for the past 140 days while the co-accused in the case were out on bail. Ragini’s counsel argued that no contraband was seized from her but the “only thing is consumption of less than 0.5gm of contraband”. Meanwhile, the solicitor general defended the HC order stating multiple messages allegedly shared between the actor and various drug peddlers. The solicitor general also stated that she had tried to tamper evidence in the case. Hearing the counsels, the SC bench upheld the argument of Ragini’s counsel that no drugs were found from here and that the entire case against her was based on statements. “At the highest, it can only be assumed that the petitioner consumed drugs at the parties. What is important to note is that the petitioner has been arrested also on a conspiracy charge which the HC itself found to be tenuous and said nothing about the charge,” the SC bench said. Ragini Dwivedi was taken in for questioning from her residence in Bengaluru’s Yelahanka on the morning of September 4 by the Central Crime Branch. The actor was among the first few accused persons, who were arrested in connection with the case. The CCB began probing the drug case after the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested a woman named Anikha, Anoop Mohammed and Ravindra with huge amounts of Ecstacy and LSD blots. The NCB officials claimed that the trio were selling drugs to Kannada actors and singers since 2015, when they started their racket. Read: Bengaluru drug bust: Drug peddler allegedly had diary with names of Kannada celebs Ragini Dwivedi’s name cropped up in the case after the CCB began surveilling her close friend Ravi Shankar, a clerk at the Regional Transport Office in Jayanagar. The CCB found that Ravi Shankar was procuring drugs and selling it to celebrities at high profile parties. On September 3, the CCB arrested Ravi Shankar, who allegedly mentioned Ragini Dwivedi’s name. The CCB officials claimed that Ragini Dwivedi procured the drugs from Ravi Shankar and distributed it to persons she had invited to for the high-profile parties in Bengaluru. Ragini Dwivedi was denied bail on September 28, 2020 by the special court trying Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances cases in Bengaluru. She and another Sandalwood actor Sanjjana Galrani, who was arrested in connection with the case on September 8, had applied for bail, which was denied by the sessions court. The two actors were in police custody till September 14 and were lodged in the undertrial block at the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison subsequently. On November 4, the Karnataka High Court denied bail to both Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjana Galrani. On December 11, 2020, the Karnataka High court granted bail to actor Sanjjana Galrani on medical grounds. Her counsel had submitted test reports stating that Sanjjana needed medical attention as she suffers from asthma and polycystic ovarian syndrome. The health check report called for immediate medical attention, due to which she was granted bail. Meanwhile, Ragini’s legal counsel moved the Supreme Court seeking bail. 

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