Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda, who is on a two-day visit to West Bengal to take stock of the post-poll violence, said on Wednesday that Mamata Banerjee has started her third term as chief minister with blood on her hands.

Briefing media persons, the BJP chief said, “The manner in which a massacre and brutal killings took place and the manner in which the acting chief minister stayed silent for 36 hours speak of her involvement. Mamata ji’s silence speaks about her involvement and she starts her third term with blood on her hands.”

“I condemn the brutal killings which have taken place after the results. We also stand by the people of Bengal and all citizens residing in Bengal with whom such incidents took place. This makes me remember the Partition days. I remember 16 August 1946, Direct Action Day. When I recall that day, I also recall incidents that took place post noon of May 2. We have to keep in mind that May 2 has become ‘khela hobe’ day. We have to remember what Mamata ji said in Nandigram and what happened here,” stated Nadda.

Nadda is on a two-day visit to West Bengal starting from Tuesday to hold a protest against the alleged atrocities on party workers in the state by the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) government.

The Indian Army on Wednesday made it clear that the deployment of military medical professionals did not affect the operational efficiency of the Indian Army, in the wake of the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic.

“A number of articles have appeared in the media indicating that the deployment of Army medical assets in various Covid-19 hospitals has adversely affected the operational efficiency of the Indian Army. It is clarified that deployment of military medical professionals has been deliberated at the highest level and that there is no dilution in the operational preparedness of Indian Armed Forces along both Northern and Western borders,” informed a statement by the Indian Army.

In keeping with its ethos of selfless service to the nation, the Indian Army has created a number of Covid facilities on a war footing in order to provide extensive medical assistance to veterans and their dependents at a number of places. One such facility has been created at the Base Hospital Delhi Cantonment (BHDC) which has been converted completely into a Covid hospital with comprehensive arrangements for providing critical care to all incoming patients.

On May 1, the Indian Army requested all veteran officers of the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) to register themselves on the e-Sehat portal and offer teleconsultation services to countrymen during the Covid-19 crisis.

On April 29, Chief of Army Staff General MM Naravane called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They had discussed various initiatives being taken by the Army to help in Covid management, said the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). According to the statement released by the PMO, General MM Naravane informed the Prime Minister that the medical staff of the Army is being made available to various state governments.

He had also briefed the Prime Minister that the Army is setting up temporary hospitals in various parts of the country, the PMO said. It further informed that General MM Naravane apprised PM Modi that the Army is opening up its hospitals for civilians wherever possible,

A study conducted by the researchers from the University of Liverpool has shown the potential of repurposing an existing and cheap drug into a long-acting injectable therapy that could be used to treat Covid-19.

In a paper published in the journal Nanoscale, researchers from the University’s Centre of Excellence for Long-acting Therapeutics (CELT) demonstrate the nanoparticle formulation of niclosamide, a highly insoluble drug compound, as a scalable long-acting injectable antiviral candidate. The team started repurposing and reformulating identified drug compounds with the potential for COVID-19 therapy candidates within weeks of the first lockdown. Niclosamide is just one of the drug compounds identified and proved highly effective against SARS-CoV-2 in myriad laboratory studies.

Using their expertise in the fields of materials chemistry, long-acting drug delivery, and pharmacology, CELT scientists used nanoprecipitation to form dispersible solid drug nanoparticle formulations of niclosamide that can be stored as solids, reconstituted with water, and utilised as long-acting injectables. Their research has demonstrated sustained circulating drug concentrations may be maintained for the duration of early infection after a single injection.

CELT is co-directed by pharmacologist Professor Andrew Owen and materials chemist Professor Steve Rannard at the University of Liverpool.

Professor Steve Rannard said: “Repurposing drug compounds is much more than using existing medicines for a new disease. The existing active drug compound needs to be shown to be active at a significant level, then reformulated to address new challenges. The conventional route of administration may also not be relevant and modifying the way the patient receives the drug compound is highly critical to efficacy. Niclosamide is an ideal candidate to be taken forward as a potential long-acting injectable therapeutic to treat Covid-19.

“This is still in early-stage development but the CELT team are currently working with a contract manufacturing organisation to take this forward towards scale-up and clinical manufacture. This work is progressing well and if successful, human trials would be next. We envisage a future `Test-and-Treat’ scenario where infected people are treated at the point of diagnosis with the full course of therapy in one injection.”

Professor Andrew Owen said: “Repurposing of medicines for SARS-CoV-2 has yielded mixed results, with some clear successes for immunomodulatory drugs such as dexamethasone, and work underway to repurpose drugs like favipiravir and molnupiravir that were designed for other viruses.

“The ultimate utility of our long-acting injectable can only be determined inadequately powered and well-controlled randomised clinical trials but unlike other drugs that have been explored for repurposing niclosamide target concentrations may be achievable in humans. The formulation has shown great promise in preclinical studies at a time when it is increasingly evident that drugs are urgently required to complement the vaccines.

After conducting search operations at Andheri (E) in Mumbai, Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai on Monday seized two kilograms of Pseudoephedrine. 

The parcel was booked at Nagpur on 29 April and was destined for Toongabbie in Australia. A team of NCB Mumbai left for Nagpur to trace the sender of the parcel.

“The parcel was booked at Nagpur on 29 April and was destined to Toongabbie in Australia. One team of NCB Mumbai has been dispatched to Nagpur for searching the sender of the parcel. We have registered a criminal offence in the matter and are probing further,” an official said.

“Pseudoephedrine is a stimulant, but it is well known for shrinking swollen nasal mucous membranes, so it is often used as a decongestant. It reduces tissue hyperemia, edema, and nasal congestion commonly associated with colds or allergies. Pseudoephedrine is used for the manufacture of Psychotropic Substances like Amphetamines and Methamphetamines,” said an NCB official.

The drug was hidden in a consignment of kitchen appliances that was destined to Toongabbie. Earlier Narcotics Control Bureau had arrested one person from Mumbai and Goa and seized multiple drugs like amphetamine, LSD, cocaine, heroin, mephedrone and ecstasy.

In a major ruling which could have a far-reaching impact on the societal aspects of the Marathas, the Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down the reservation in government jobs and educational institutions for the Maratha community brought in by the Maharashtra government in 2018, saying it exceeded the 50% cap imposed earlier.

A five-judge Constitution Bench of the top court, comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, L Nageswara Rao, S. Abdul Nazeer, Hemant Gupta and Ravindra Bhat pronounced its judgment today. The Supreme Court said that that people from the Maratha community cannot be declared as educationally and socially backward community to bring them within the reserved category.

Justice Bhushan, leading the bench of the Apex Court, while pronouncing the judgment, said, “With respect to Article 342 A, we have up held the Constitutional Amendment and it does not violate any Constitutional provision and therefore, we have dismissed the writ petition challenging the Maratha reservation.”

The Supreme Court in its judgment said that there was no valid ground to breach 50% reservation while granting Maratha reservation.

The bench was hearing a batch of appeals filed challenging the Bombay High Court order that upheld reservations to Marathas in jobs and education under Maharashtra Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act, 2018.

The Bombay High Court, while upholding the Maratha quota, held that 16% reservation is not justifiable and ruled that reservation should not exceed 12% in employment and 13% in education as recommended by the State Backward Classes Commission.

The Bombay High Court on 27 June 2019 had said the 50% cap on total reservations imposed by the Supreme Court could be exceeded in exceptional circumstances. The apex court had reserved its verdict in March last week, this year. Justice Bhushan, reading out the judgment said, “We do not find any reason in revisiting Indira Sawhney judgment, we follow and reiteration proposition followed in Sawhney’s case.”

The Apex Court in its judgment said that there was no valid ground to breach 50% reservation while granting Maratha reservation. The top court also made it clear in its judgment that people from the Maratha community cannot be declared as educationally and socially backward community to bring them within a reserved category. After the verdict was pronounced, the former standing counsel of the Maharashtra Government, Nishant Katneshwarkar, said that the State has failed to protect the interest of the Maratha community people.

“The Supreme Court has discarded the Gaikwad Commission’s report on the ground that it has failed to make out an exception for exceeding 50% reservation. Interestingly, no advocate from Maharashtra, who is well acquainted with the ground reality including the Advocate General argued in support of the report. The state government of Maharashtra failed to protect the interest of the Maratha community people,” Katneswarkar told ANI.

The Bench of the Apex Court had reserved the judgment on the issue on March 26, Friday, as to whether the SC 1992 verdict for capping reservation at 50% needs re-examination or not.

The final hearings in the case had commenced on 15 March. During the hearing, the central government said that it is of the view that the SEBC Act, which extends reservations to the Maratha community in public education and employment, is constitutional.

The Attorney General (AG) of India, KK Venugopal had earlier stated that States continue to have powers to identify socially and educationally backward classes in so far as it relates to reservations for State institutions.

One of the appeals filed by J Laxman Rao Patil had earlier sought to stay on the High Court order as the reservation today is 65% in education and 62% in jobs, exceeding 50% cap in total reservation.

Another appeal filed by advocate Sanjeet Shukla, a representative of “Youth for Equality”, said the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) Act, 2018, enacted to grant reservation to the Maratha community people in jobs and education, breached the 50% ceiling on reservation fixed by the top court in its judgment in the Indira Sawhney case.

WITH ANI INPUTS

As the country is battling with the harrowing second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, numerous states are witnessing the acute dearth of medical amenities.

In view of COVID-19 vaccine shortage in the state, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday directed the Health Department to explore all possible options to boost the supply and kick-start the vaccination process for people in 18-44 age group in government hospitals in the state.

As per an official release, the state government had made a payment of Rs 10.37 crore to Serum Institute of India (SII) for procurement of around 30 lakh doses on April 26. “However, no schedule for supply had so far been received from them (SII),” Health Secretary Hussan Lal informed the state cabinet during a virtual meeting chaired by the Chief Minister.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said that vaccination has started in both government and private sectors, but the national capital needs more supply of vaccine doses.

The Delhi CM while on a visit to the vaccination centre at Radha Soami Satsang Beas in Rajendra Nagar area in Delhi said, “Vaccination has started in both government and private sectors. The only problem is that we need the vaccine on large scale but we have received very few doses of vaccine.” “As I have earlier informed that we can vaccinate whole Delhi in three weeks. We can achieve the target if we receive sufficient doses of vaccine,” Kejriwal said.

“We are suffering from the shortage of medical oxygen for the last many days. We are working with the Centre regarding this. We are trying that Delhi gets the share of medical oxygen that it needs. We have received a lot of support from the Supreme Court and the High Court in this regard,” the Delhi CM told ANI over the shortage of oxygen in the national capital. He further said that the Delhi government is trying its best to supply oxygen wherever it is needed and to prevent deaths due to a shortage of oxygen.

Likewise, the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday requesting him to ensure adequate supply of COVID vaccines, medical oxygen, and drugs like Remdesivir and Tocilizumab to the state.

She once again requested the Prime Minister for free COVID vaccination for all citizens. “Free vaccination as Universal immunization for all in a transparent and time-bound manner. At present, vaccine availability is too inadequate to provide to eligible beneficiaries and the Government of India direction 10 extend vaccination upto 18 years plus makes an unrealistic to achieve. So, the supply of vaccines is the core issue to address now. Ensuring adequate availability of essential drugs including Remdesivir and Tocilizumab to the States to meet their rising demand. At least, 10,000 doses of Remdesivir and 1000 vials of Tocilizumab is the daily requirement in our State,” she said.

Mamata Banerjee’s letter comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted her for her party’s victory in the recently concluded West Bengal assembly polls.

“Congratulations to Mamata Didi for Trinamool Congress’ win in West Bengal. The Centre will continue to extend all possible support to the West Bengal Government to fulfill people’s aspirations and also to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic,” tweeted the Prime Minister.