On Wednesday, a Goa sessions court deferred the pronouncement of judgment in the case of sexual assault against Tarun Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of the news magazine Tehelka, to 19 May.

The Mapusa District and Sessions Court in North Goa cited a shortage of staff on account of Covid-19 for delaying the judgment. While the case was earlier listed for judgment on April 27, the court had deferred it till Wednesday.

Tejpal, who was accused of raping a woman, faced trial in the November case in which the victim had accused him of sexually assaulting her inside a lift at a five-star hotel in Goa.

Tejpal was arrested on November 30, 2013, but later released on bail.

Hyderabad: Officials of the Andhra Pradesh state council on higher education briefed Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday about the current progress of the revamping of the state’s universities.

Under the NIRF (National Institute Ranking Framework) 2020, which prescribes five distinct parameters, Andhra University ranks 19th and Sri Venkateshwara University ranks 38th in the country. Reddy instructed the officials to revamp the institutions with the aim putting them at par with international universities and providing the best possible resources to the youth of the state.

The Chief Minister stated, “The development of infrastructure and education standards is vital. It is the main reason why I am so passionate about Nadu-Nedu, and why we invested Rs 16,000 crores in that scheme.”

The Andhra CM emphasised that students deserve quality education and it is the state’s responsibility to ensure that they receive it. He also asserted that meticulous care should be taken while engaging teaching staff, and consistent workshops and training programs should take place to ensure they are up to date and well versed with developments in their respective fields. Building on That, Reddy also insisted that further research should take place on the practices and policies of international universities so that they can be incorporated in the universities of Andhra Pradesh.

In the scheme of revamping existing universities, the Andhra government is establishing more IIITs and medical colleges in the state. Currently, there are only 11 medical colleges in the state. The process to establish 16 more has been initiated, which will result in the number of seats available in the state to rises significantly. 

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in fresh orders issued on Wednesday once again allowed walk-in Covid vaccinations in Mumbai from Monday to Wednesday for citizens over 60 years of age and the differently-abled who are eligible for the second dose. This would be allowed at centres near their homes only.

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday, vaccination would take place only by prior appointment. On Sunday, it would remain closed.

Walk-in vaccinations had been prohibited for a few days due to a shortage of vaccines. The vaccination drive in Mumbai for those in the 18-44 age group is also likely to get suspended, as the state government plans to inoculate those above 45 who are due for their second dose first.

The vaccination drive was also suspended at some centres in Nagpur on Wednesday due to the shortage of Covid vaccines. To deal with the challenge of vaccine shortages, the Maharashtra government is trying to import vaccines directly from abroad.

Maharashtra is also facing rising cases of mucormycosis. Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Tuesday informed that the state is treating more than 2000 patients suffering from the rare fungal infection. The infection has taken the lives of two Covid patients in Thane, a health official said on Wednesday. Six other patients are currently undergoing treatment for it, which is also known as black fungus, the official said.

Indian National Congress President of Maharashtra Nana Patole criticised BJP national president J.P. Nadda for the letter he wrote to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi.

During a press conference, Patole said, “BJP’s puppet chief J.P. Nadda spoke against Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. I would like to ask, till when will they only target the Gandhi family and do politics? They’re undertaking the Rs 20,000-crore Central Vista project but not giving necessary funds for vaccination.”

In his letter, Nadda had written that he was saddened by the behaviour of Congress during the Covid crisis. “Some CMs and important leaders of the party are misleading the people on the issue of corona. The people’s representatives are doing an admirable job of helping. But the hard work of these people is being wasted due to the negativity of senior party leaders,” Nadda had said in the letter.

The Maharashtra Congress chief also asked the Supreme Court to set up a parallel national government as the Modi-led BJP government has failed to protect the country from the pandemic.

“The current Covid situation in the country is critical. The petition filed by the Central government in the apex court said that the apex court was not omnipresent in the case of corona. This matter is unfortunate. The Supreme Court is the soul of the Constitution. Therefore, it is not correct to say so. No one knows on what basis Prime Minister Modi imposed the ban. The Central government is working to finalise the Constitution. Decisions regarding Covid should be made in the national policy. The Supreme Court should not only form a task force for Covid management but also form a parallel national government as the Modi-led BJP government has failed to protect the country from the pandemic. There is a provision in Constitution for this,” he said further.

“BJP’s chief JP Nadda spoke against Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, which was mere frustration of not being able to handle the Covid crisis. The Central government has failed to curb the spread of Covid in the country. The Centre has lied about giving free vaccines. Also, the affidavit filed by the Centre in the Supreme Court is fatal for democracy. This is a government that does not abide by the Constitution,” Patole added.

After several corpses were spotted in the Ganga in Bihar’s Buxar district on Monday, Bihar Minister Sanjay Kumar Jha said in a series of tweets that the state government has advised the UP administration to be vigilant regarding the matter.

Jha, who is the Minister of Water Resources and Information and Public Relations, said, “The Bihar Government is seized of the matter of unfortunate case of floating mortal remains in river Ganga, near Chausa village in Buxar district. The bodies have floated into Bihar from UP. Upon postmortem, our doctors have confirmed that these are 4-5 days old bodies,” he said.

He said that 71 bodies have been taken out from the river in the district and their last rites have been performed. A net has also been placed in the Ganga in Ranighat, bordering UP and Bihar, to stop any similar incident from happening again, he informed.

Jha also said Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has been pained at both the tragedy as well as harm to the river Ganges. “He has always been particular about the purity and uninterrupted flow of the river and has asked the administration to intensify patrolling to ensure this is not repeated…Advise all to give all respect to those dead, and Maa Ganges,” Jha said.

Meanwhile, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) on Tuesday directed that dumping of dead bodies in the river Ganga be stopped “immediately”.

The order came after dead bodies, partially burnt bodies and unclaimed or unidentified corpses, suspected to be of Covid victims, were found floating along the banks of the Ganga and its tributaries, “causing shock and fear among the public”.

In the notice issued by Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, NMCG Director General, the organisation said that standard practice(s) are being followed for the disposal of unidentified dead bodies/unclaimed corpses found in the Ganga and its tributaries, and added that appropriate funding assistance, if required, will be considered for approval by NMCG after receipt of such requests.

“All unidentified dead bodies/unclaimed corpses of suspected Covid victims should be properly disposed of in accordance with the Covid-safety protocol of Government of India Guidelines on Covid 19 Dead Body Management,” the notice said.

It further directed the concerned officials to ensure strict vigilance along the length of the river within the territorial jurisdiction of the district to prevent and check such future incidences of people dumping dead bodies in the Ganga and its tributaries and of any other activities hazardous for the rivers and health and hygiene in the area.

“Take necessary action to address the issue at the earliest and submit an Action Taken Report to NMCG within 14 (fourteen) days,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, Buxar District Magistrate Aman Samir informed the media that a narrative is being set that due to a lack of wooden logs for the cremation or the poor facing financial issues, dead bodies are being immersed in the Ganga in Buxar. (With ANI inputs)

The head of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Dr Balram Bhargava, has said that districts reporting a high number of infections should remain locked down for another six to eight weeks to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Dr Bhargava said, as reported by Reuters, that lockdown restrictions should remain in place in all districts where the rate of infection is above 10% of those tested.

Bhargava’s comments are the first time a senior government official has outlined how India needs long lockdowns to curb the rising Covid-19 cases in India.

“The high positivity districts should remain (shut). If they come to 5% from 10% (positivity rate) we can open them, but that has to happen. That won’t happen in six-eight weeks, clearly,” Bhargava said in an interview with Reuters at the New Delhi headquarters of the ICMR. Referring to the capital, one of India’s hardest hit cities where the positivity rate reached around 35% but has now fallen to about 17%, Bhargava said: “If Delhi is opened tomorrow, it will be a disaster.”

Bhargava conceded that there had been a delay in responding to the Covid crisis. “I think the only discontent we have was there was a slight delay accepting the 10% (recommendation), but that did happen,” he said.