NITED NATIONS/GENEVA, Oct 6: The World Health Organization has issued an alert for four “contaminated” medicines manufactured by an Indian pharmaceutical company that have been “potentially linked” with acute kidney injuries and 66 deaths among children in The Gambia.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters Wednesday, “The four medicines are cough and cold syrups produced by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited in India. WHO is conducting further investigation with the company and regulatory authorities in India,” he said, adding that the loss of young lives due to the products is “beyond heart-breaking for their families”.
The four products are Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup. The manufacturer of these products is Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited, Haryana, India, and “to date, the stated manufacturer has not provided guarantees to WHO on the safety and quality of these products”, WHO said.
The WHO chief said while the contaminated products have so far only been detected in The Gambia, they may have been distributed to other countries. WHO has recommended all countries detect and remove these products from circulation to prevent further harm to patients.
The WHO Medical Product Alert refers to four substandard products, identified in The Gambia and reported to WHO in September 2022.
WHO said substandard medical products are the products that fail to meet either their quality standards or specifications. Therefore, they are “out of specification”, the health body said.
Laboratory analysis of samples of each of the four products confirms that they contain unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants.
Outlining the risks associated with the products, WHO said diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are toxic to humans when consumed and can prove fatal.
“Toxic effects can include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache, altered mental state and acute kidney injury which may lead to death,” it said.
All batches of these products should be considered unsafe until they can be analysed by the relevant National Regulatory Authorities. The substandard products referenced in this alert are unsafe and their use, especially in children, may result in serious injury or death, it added. (Agencies)
WHO alert on 4 Indian cough syrups as 66 Gambian kids die
Gazette notified, J-K delimitation final: EC tells Supreme Court
New Delhi, October:
The delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir has attained finality after the publication of the Delimitation Orders in Gazette Notifications on May 5 in terms of the Delimitation Act, the Election Commission has told the Supreme Court.
Before publication of the final order, a number of public sittings were held to accord full opportunity to members of the public to make oral and written submissions before the Delimitation Commission, the poll panel said in an affidavit filed in response to a petition challenging the delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir.
Under Article 329(a) of the Constitution, there was a bar on judicial interference regarding the validity of any law relating to the delimitation of constituencies, it pointed out. Citing Section 10(2) of Delimitation Act, the EC said, “Upon publication in the Gazette of India, every such order shall have the force of law and shall not be called in question in any court.”
Earlier, the Centre had also asserted that the delimitation exercise in the newly created UT had become final and it couldn’t be challenged in courts. It had said the petition was nothing but a “frivolous attempt to challenge the Delimitation Commission without any basis”.
A Bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul is likely to take up the petition filed by Srinagar residents Haji Abdul Gani Khan and Mohammad Ayub Mattoo on October 13.
Dry weather likely to continue in J&K
Jammu, Oct 6: Weather was dry in J&K during the last 24 hours as the MeT office said on Thursday, and that same conditions are likely to prevail during the next 24 hours.
Dry weather is likely to continue in J&K during the next 24 hours”, an official of the MeT department said.
Night temperatures have dropped significantly in the valley as locals have started wearing warm clothes.
Mornings and evenings are colder with many Kashmiris donning the ‘Pheran’.
Srinagar had 9.6, Pahalgam 5.6 and Gulmarg also 5.6 degrees Celsius as the minimum temperature today.
Drass town in Ladakh region had 0.5, Kargil 6.6 and Leh 2 as the minimum temperature.
Jammu had 21.1, Katra 18.2, Batote 12.1, Banihal 8 and Bhaderwah 10.5 as the minimum temperature.
Domestic help confesses to murdering DGP Lohia
Jammu, October:
The police on Wednesday said the domestic help, Yasir Ahmed, accused of murdering DGP (Prisons) Hemant Kumar Lohia, has confessed his crime. The body of the 1992-batch IPS officer, who was murdered at his friend’s house on the outskirts of Jammu late on Monday night, was cremated with full state honours. Lohia was killed after he was stabbed multiple times and his throat slit with a broken glass bottle by Yasir who was arrested by the police from Kanachak on Tuesday morning.
During interrogation, Yasir accepted that he killed Lohia inside a room of the house of Rajiv Khajuria, a family friend of the officer where he stayed as his home was under renovation. A resident of Ramban district, Yasir was a domestic help of Khajuria. He was hired six months ago.
The police have also ruled out the terror angle. ADGP Mukesh Singh said, “No terror angle has emerged during the investigation. The interrogation of the accused is in progress. His disclosures are being corroborated with field investigation.”
The police are focusing on the motive as there seems to be no sudden trigger. Documents, including Yasir’s diary, suggest he was depressed, police officials informed.
The police have also ruled out the terror angle. ADGP Mukesh Singh said, “No terror angle has emerged during the investigation. The interrogation of the accused is in progress. His disclosures are being corroborated with field investigation.”
The police are focusing on the motive as there seems to be no sudden trigger. Documents, including Yasir’s diary, suggest he was depressed, police officials informed.
While most of the diary entries, purportedly written by him, make no mention of date, police sources said that some of those entries might have been written a few months ago after he started working at Khajuria’s house.
“The police are also trying to know the reason behind Yasir’s unstable state of mind to understand what triggered him to attack the senior police officer as it could be the key,” said sources.
Meanwhile, a wreath laying ceremony was held at the district police lines in Jammu to pay homage to Lohia.
Sonia Gandhi joins Bharat Jodo Yatra in Karnataka
Pandavapura (KTK), Oct 6: Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday joined the Bharat Jodo Yatra here, participating in a public event of the party after a long gap.
Amid cheers and slogan-shouting by party workers, Sonia Gandhi walked besides her son Rahul Gandhi and other leaders for a few kilometres in Mandya district of Karnataka.
A number of senior Congress leaders, including former chief minister Siddaramaiah and PCC president D K Shivakumar, walked along with the Gandhis.
Security personnel had a tough time controlling the crowds which jostled to get a glimpse of the Congress president.
This is the first time that Sonia Gandhi has joined a public event after recovering from COVID-19 earlier this year. The Congress president had contracted coronavirus twice and was also hospitalised.
Sonia Gandhi has not been electioneering or participating in public events of the party for a long time due to health reasons.
She had last participated in a roadshow in Varanasi in August 2016 where she sustained a shoulder injury and later underwent a surgery.
The 3,570 km long Bharat Jodo Yatra began from Kanyakumari on September 8. With the Yatra, the Congress said it wants to combat the alleged divisive politics of the BJP-led Central government. (Agencies)
Active Covid cases dip to 32,282
New Delhi, Oct 6: India recorded 2,529 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,46,04,463, while the active cases dipped to 32,282, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday.
The death toll climbed to 5,28,745 with 12 fatalities which includes eight deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The active cases comprise 0.07 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate increased to 98.74 per cent, the ministry said.
A decline of 1,036 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 2.07 per cent and the weekly positivity rate at 1.38 per cent, according to the ministry.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,40,43,436, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.
According to the ministry, 218.84 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.
India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16. It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.
The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. It crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year. (Agencies)
Amit Shah inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 240 development projects worth about Rs 2,000 crore in Srinagar
SRINAGAR, Oct: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah today inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 240 development projects of about Rs. 2,000 crore in Srinagar.
Amit Shah also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of several development projects worth crores of Rupees in Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir and addressed a public meeting in the region.
Several dignitaries including the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha and Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh were also present on the occasion.development of the country by connecting with industries. He said that there are two models, one is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s model of development, peace, harmony and employment and the other which leads to Pulwama attack. Prime Minister Modi has constructed a hospital in Pulwama with an expenditure of Rs. 2,000 crore. The second model consists of stones and machine guns and closed colleges for the youth, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s model has IIMs and IITs. Shah said that youth should get education and not have stones in their hands and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken stones from the hands of the youth and inspired them to educate themselves.Amit Shah said that the government has initiated the political process and he wants to assure the people that as soon as the task of preparing the electoral rolls by the Election Commission is over, elections will be held within Kashmir for the people with complete transparency. The elected representatives will rule in the region. He said that earlier the delimitation was done to benefit only the people of three families, but now as a result of the delimitation, the representatives of the people will win and they will rule. The Union Home Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured that Kashmir is now almost free from terror. He advised people that if someone in their village supports terrorists, then they must be reasoned with and brought back into the mainstream because terror and terrorism cannot benefit Kashmir, only democracy, industrialization, AIIMS, IIM and IIT, can benefit Kashmir.The Union Home and Cooperation Minister said that during the rule of three families, the budget of Jammu and Kashmir was merely Rs. 132 crore, while in 2022-23, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi the budget has been increased from Rs. 132 crore to Rs. 1,515 crore. Rs.10 crore have been allotted separately for DDC and PDC. Shah said that five new degree colleges are also being opened in different areas of Jammu and Kashmir and the work of setting up a residential school with 100-bed capacity for Gurjar-Bakarwal girls of Baramulla has also been undertaken by the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A Government Medical College is also being set up in Baramulla, which will enable the children in the region to become doctors and help them serve the people of Kashmir. He said that only four medical colleges were built in Jammu and Kashmir from 1947 till 2014, whereas from 2014 till 2022 under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Government of India has built nine new medical colleges and 15 nursing colleges. Whereas earlier only 500 doctors used to pass out of Jammu and Kashmir, now 1,300 doctors will complete their studies and serve the country and Jammu and Kashmir. Shah said that AIIMS, NEET, B.Sc Nursing College and two Cancer Institutes have also been set up in Kashmir. New medical colleges have been set up at Anantnag and Baramulla and two cluster universities have been built in Jammu and Kashmir.
Amit Shah said that the expressway from Nangal to Baramulla and from Baramulla to Uri has been built at a cost of Rs. 850 crore. A 43-km road has been built connecting Baramulla to Gulmarg at a cost of Rs. 85 crore to help tourists travelling from Gulmarg to Baramulla. He said that over one lakh families are being brought under the ambit of education through a scheme of Rs. 847 crore. Two stadiums have been built in 402 panchayats of Jammu and Kashmir along with one playground in each panchayat. Additionally, two indoor stadiums are also being built at a cost of Rs. 10 crore. Shah said that in the month of September this year, 13 lakh tourists visited Gulmarg. He said that installation of power plants and irrigation projects worth thousands of crores of Rupees will bring prosperity to the valley of Kashmir. In order to improve the rail network, the work on rail link from Udhampur to Baramulla has been initiated. Under the Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojana, 119 new roads worth Rs.,3167 crore have been built. The Union Home Minister said that under the Prime Minister’s Industrial Package, an investment of Rs. 56,000 crore has come from across the country in Kashmir, which is likely to provide employment to five lakh people.The Union Home Minister said that earlier due to Article 370, Gujjar-Bakarwal and Pahari people could not get the benefit of Reservation in education, elections and jobs, but now after its removal, they will all get the benefits. For this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi constituted the Justice Sharma Commission and once again an attempt has been made to connect the different communities by conducting a scientific survey of ST, SC and OBC. While Reservation will now be provided to the Pahari people, the Gujjar people will continue to enjoy the benefits of Reservation that they had till now, and it will not make any difference to their share. The steps taken by the Prime Minister will pave the way for reforms in Jammu and Kashmir.
Amit Shah said that 42,000 people have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir, and all of them were children of the poor. He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants that separatism and terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir should end and Jammu and Kashmir should remain the paradise of India. The Union Home Minister appealed to the people to annihilate terrorism from Jammu and Kashmir. Amit Shah said that the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not tolerate terrorism at all. Be it the Valley or Jammu, Srinagar or Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, the government is bringing all round development work everywhere. He appealed to the people to join the mainstream of the country and empower the process of development and move forward.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah visits Gurudwara Chati Patshahi in Rainawari
Srinagar, Oct: Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited the Gurudwara Chatti Patshahi in Rainawari area on Wednesday, officials said.
After the public rally in Baramulla district in north Kashmir, Shah returned to Srinagar and attended a function at the Raj Bhavan here, the officials said.
They said immediately after the function ended, Shah visited Rainawari area of the city and paid obeisance at the Gurudwara Chatti Patshahi.
He was accompanied by Jammu and Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha and some BJP leaders.
The Union Home Minister also interacted with the devotees, the officials added. (Agencies)
Dussehra celebrated in Bhadarwah with religious fervour, security beefed up
By King RJ
Bhadarwah, Oct 05: The celebration of Dussehra festival was held in Additional district Bhadarwah with religious fervour on Wednesday evening after two years of COVID-19 restrictions.
Like other parts of the country, Dussehra festival-which marks the victory of good over evil, was celebrated with great enthusiasm, gaiety and religious fervour by both communities (Hindus and Muslims) of Bhadarwah where effigies of Ravana, Kumbkaran and Meghnath were burnt.
The venue of the celebration was changed due to congestion in Historical Seri Bazaar Bhadarwah after construction of Park and this year the main function was held in New Bus Stand Kotli Bhadarwah, where people watched the burning of sky high effigies of demon king Ravana, his brother Kumbhkarana and son Meghnath to mark the culmination of good prevailing upon evil.
DDC Chairman Doda Dhananter Singh, Ex MLA Daleep Singh Parihar, President Sanatan Dharam Sabha Bhadarwah, Convenor Sanatan Dharam Sabha Ashok Kotwal, Vice President Manoj Kotwal, Advocate Manjeet Razdan, Sanjay Saraf, Neeraj Singh Manhas and others participated in the programme of Dussehra also known as Vijaya Dashami. ADC Bhadarwah Dil Mir Choudhary, SP Bhadarwah Aftab Mir and Tehsildar Bhadarwah Showket Hayat Mattoo were also present on the occasion and they greeted all on this auspicious occassion.
On the occasion, a victory march was taken out from Seri Bazaar to new Bus Stand Kotli Bhadarwah with tableau of Lord Rama, depicting the scenes and characters from Ramayana, to mark the return of Lord Rama after killing the demon king. Thereafter, the tall effigies of Ravana, Meghnath and Kumbhkarana were set on fire, amidst bursting of loud fire crackers.
Muslims also greeted their hindu Brethren on the occasion and participated in large numbers to give message of communal harmony and brotherhood in the area since decades.
Security arrangements were beefed up in all areas.SP Bhadarwah Mohd Aftab Mir said that in view of celebrations, tight security arrangements were made in and around the venue of celebration and extra columns of security forces were deployed in all areas.
Meanwhile in a message, DDC Vice-Chairperson Doda Sangeeta Bhagat also greeted people on the eve of Dussehra also known as Vijayadashmi.“Today is the day that reminds us that in the end, evil always ends and goodness triumphs. Let’s remember it always. Happy Dussehra!”, Sangeeta quoted.
RSS Swayamsevaks perform “Path Sanchalan” at Bhaderwah
By King RJ
Bhadarwah:On the occasion of Vijayadashami and Foundation day of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) , RSS swayamsevaks today took out their traditional ‘path-sanchalan’ in Bhaderwah.
"Path Sanchalan" (full dress route march) was taken out from the Adarsh Vidya Bhavan school by RSS swayamsevaks and covering the whole town through the main market passed through Seri Bazar , Link road, Bus stand, Ganpat bazar , Jai Road and ended at Adarsh Vidya Bhavan School Bhaderwah . ’The ‘sanchalan’ was welcomed at various places by the residents of Bhaderwah with “Pushp Varsha”.
Atul Jog National General Secretary ,Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram was the main speaker and Swami Munishanand Jee Maharaj was the chief guest.
While speaking on the occasion Atul Jog said that RSS has always been at the fore front for the national cause and the aim of establishing Bharat as Vishwa Guru is now not a distant dream.
Stressing on strengthening branches of organization, he said the Swayamsevaks have more responsibility on their shoulders at present as country is facing more challenges today than it was facing during pre-independence or post independence days.
Swami Munishanand jee Maharaj emphasised upon building the national character among common masses.
Prominent persons were present in the programme including Vibhag Sanghchalak Ashok Kotwal and Zila Sanghchalak Shakti Prasad.