Congress feeling left out in Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance

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June 14, 2020

Maharashtra minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan admitted to media that there are “issues” among allies in the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition. Signs of unease in the Shiv Sena-led coalition have been visible for the last few days, with the Congress seeking a say in the decision-making process and inclusion in important meetings. Thackeray has reportedly been holding talks with NCP chief Sharad Pawar, the third ally in the coalition, on various issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic and relief for people affected by cyclone Nisarga, with sources saying this has the Congress feeling left out. Another party leader said that when the three-party government was formed in November last year and after the council of ministers was sworn in, it had been decided that there would be equal sharing of power and responsibilities. State Congress leaders had met earlier this week to discuss the party leaders and ministers were not being made part of the decision-making process in the alliance government.

There are many Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders who have gone vocal in telling media sources about developing crashes between NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray. Pawar is very much unhappy With Thackeray. Since few days there is buzz in media, to put pause to these speculation Sharad Pawar held a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to discuss the current challenges triggered by COVID-19 crisis and suggested ways to boost the state’s economy by introducing a policy of “encouraging new incentives” for industry growth and relaxing some conditions of lockdown. During the meeting, Sharad Pawar gave some suggestions to the Chief Minister on various important issues related to transport, education, agriculture, and industry. He said an action plan is needed on how to accommodate those in the industries for whom new employment opportunities have been created in the state and suggested that to attract new investment in the state, it seems necessary to introduce a policy of encouraging new incentives for industry growth. Pawar was very proficient and to the point. Earlier Uddhav’s government has emphasized on starting industries in the state by relaxing some conditions of the ongoing lockdown. But these steps are not enough. Factories are not in a position to function as workers from the state and outside the state have migrated to their villages. Pawar pressed the point to plan how migrants can be brought back to city. The NCP chief further stressed that the situation in the state will have to be restored by relaxing some conditions of lockdown and the government shall make some arrangements to open shops, offices, and private sector establishments in a phased manner. In order to increase imports, exports, and inland shipping, consultations should be held with business, entrepreneurs and expert officials in the field. He further called for setting up a study group or committee to ensure students, teachers and institutes do not suffer and there is no disruption in imparting education. Pawar told Uddhav to highlight on increasing attendance of ministers and officials in offices, this step will create public confidence that the situation in the state is returning to normal. Appropriate instructions should be issued to the ministers and officials to be present in their office. He expressed concerns towards the disarray of transportation service and observed that there is a need to take appropriate steps to gradually restore road transport within the state, as well as plan for the resumption of air and rail services. He asserted on undertaking a mass awareness program to educate people on maintaining cleanliness and social distancing. Pawar is very much upset on Maharashtra’s suffering soring COVID-19 lockdown. Somewhere he feels Uddhav has not done enough for the state when it comes to good governance.

The visible difference between Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar came to surface when he expressed dissatisfaction over his alliance government in the State of Maharashtra’s decision to give consent to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to investigate the Elgar Parishad case, reports the Times of India. Expressing displeasure over Chief Minister (CM) Uddhav Thackeray’s nod to handing over of the case to the NIA. Pawar has repeatedly demanded that a special investigation team headed by a senior officer of the Indian Police Service (IPS) be appointed to investigate into the complaints against police and home department officers in connection with the Elgar Parishad case. Meanwhile, disbelieving Pawar’s claim that the Union Government’s move to take over the investigation was not proper, Maharashtra State’s law and judiciary department has said that it was within the powers of the Union Government to take over the case. In relations to Pawar’s comment Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe said, “The CM must have taken the decision in the larger interest of Maharashtra, one should not look for any political point. The CM must have applied his conscience while taking the decision. The alliance government headed by Uddhav Thackeray has agreed to transfer the 2018 Elgar Parishad case to the NIA complying with a January 25 decision of the Centre. Pawar who played a crucial role in bringing the Congress on board to form an alliance with the Shiv Sena is now regretting his decision.

Interestingly, when the Maha Vikas Aghadi government took charge, Sharad Pawar had written a letter to CM Uddhav, demanding a probe by a SIT. He alleged that the previous BJP-led government abused its power to book activists and called the arrests of activists a conspiracy. Amid the clashes between NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray, Maharashtra deputy CM Ajit Pawar stated that no ‘fortuneteller can predict how long the Uddhav Thackeray government will last’, while addressing reporters in Mumbai. Ajit Pawar, who had previously jumped ship to form an unsuccessful BJP-NCP government, added that things will run smoothly till it runs according to the will of Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, and Uddhav Thackeray. Dismissing other statements on its crumbling alliance, he said no other statements apart from the three chiefs should be considered. On the other hand, the Shiv Sena veteran made statement that, If Cong-NCP don’t behave, Uddhav will resign’ to which Congress neta reveals unhappiness, compulsions Thackeray-Pawar clashes. Earlier, Thackeray challenged the BJP to pull down the Maha Vikas Aghadi government if they can. The BJP had claimed that Maharashtra government will collapse before completing its tenure of five years owing to infighting. Thackeray and Pawar have locked horns over several issues. There has been discontent among the Sena-NCP-Congress after the expansion of the Maharashtra cabinet, there is a feeling in the Sena camp that the NCP has walked away with not only the highest number of portfolios but also the most important ones. Sena, for example, had to cede the Home and the Finance portfolio.

The Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance was formed after the Sena-BJP ‘Mahayuti’ fell out squabbling over CM post and portfolio sharing. Since then, Shiv Sena which formed a secular coalition has been locking horns over Hindutva with Congress, majorly over its hero- Savarkar. Amid the growing differences between the allies of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government – Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress now Sharad Pawar is all set to mend his ways once COVID-19 crises settles in state.

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Amit Shah transfers 4 IAS officers to Delhi govt to assist COVID-19 fight; 2 more attached from Centre

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Afternoon Voice

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June 14, 2020

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday ordered the immediate transfer of four IAS officers to the Delhi government and attachment of another two from the Centre to help the national capital fight the coronavirus pandemic. The order was issued within hours of a high-level meeting Shah held with Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

“@HMOIndia @AmitShah directed immediate transfer of 4 IAS officers – Awanish Kumar & Monica Priyadarshini from A&N (Andaman and Nicobar Islands), & Gaurav Singh Rajawat & Vikram Singh Mallik from Arunachal Pradesh to New Delhi to assist #GNCTD (Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi) for management of #COVID19,” a home ministry spokesperson said. Shah also directed attachment with the Delhi government of two senior IAS officers — SCL Das and SS Yadav — from the central government.

After his meeting with Baijal and Kejriwal, Shah said the central government will make available its five senior officers to the Delhi government to help fight the coronavirus vigorously. The COVID-19 tally has reached nearly 39,000 in Delhi and the virus has claimed more than 1,200 lives so far in the capital, raising an alarm in the central government.

‘MS Dhoni…’, ‘Kedarnath’ fame actor Sushant Singh Rajput commits suicide, found hanging at his residence

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Afternoon Voice

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June 14, 2020

Bollywood actor and television star Sushant Singh Rajput has committed suicide on Sunday. As per preliminary investigation, he was found hanging at his residence in Bandra.

Sushant made a name for himself on the small screen, especially with Pavitra Rishta, where he played the lead role, before jumping to the big screen. Sushant broke on to the big screen with Abhishek Kapoor’s ‘Kai Po Che’, based on Chetan Bhagat’s bestselling book ‘The Three Mistakes of My Life’.

‘Kai Po Che’ catapulted Sushant Singh Rajput, a smalltown boy, into almost overnight fame.

After 2013’s ‘Kai Po Che’, Sushant worked in ‘Shuddh Desi Romance’ with Parineeti Chopra, and then went on to do several films.

He was last seen in ‘Chhichhore’ opposite Shraddha Kapoor. It was a film directed by Nitesh Tiwari, which dealt with college life and the frustrations of the later years.

Condolences poured in from all quarters for the highly-talented actor who won several awards for his roles in movies like ‘M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story’, ‘PK’ and ‘Kedarnath’.

His movie ‘Dil Bechara’ was supposed to release of May 8, but was postponed due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

No arrest for Vinod Dua till July 6; probe to continue: Special SC hearing the sedition case

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Afternoon Voice

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June 14, 2020

In a relief to a senior journalist Vinod Dua, the Supreme Court in a special hearing on Sunday ordered that he should not be arrested till July 6 in a sedition case lodged against him in Himachal Pradesh over his YouTube show

The top court said that Dua will have to join the investigation and there shall be no stay on the ongoing probe undertaken by the Himachal Pradesh police

A bench of justices U U Lalit, M M Shantanagoudar and Vineet Saran issued notices to the Centre and the state government and sought their responses within two weeks.

Delhi COVID-19 crisis: HM Amit Shah holds meeting with CM Kejriwal, LG Baijal

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Afternoon Voice

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June 14, 2020

Amid rising concern over the rapid growth of the novel coronavirus cases, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday held a meeting with Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and others to discuss the situation in Delhi.

The meeting comes in the wake of increasing number of coronavirus cases in Delhi, where the tally has reached nearly 39,000 cases and the death toll rose to over 1,200.

The meeting is focused on how to tackle the pandemic in Delhi, availability of hospital beds, testing facilities and improvements of other heath infrastructure, a government official said.

Apart from Shah, Baijal and Kejriwal, those who attended the meeting include Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, members of the State Disaster Management Authority and senior officers from the Home and Health ministries.

The home minister has also called a separate meeting in the evening with the mayors of Delhi’s three municipal corporations — North, South and East — and commissioners of the civic bodies to discuss the coronavirus situation in the capital.

The lieutenant governor, chief minister and the Union health minister will also attend the evening meeting. The number of coronavirus cases in Delhi is the third highest in the country after Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

There has been criticism from different quarters over the handling of COVID-19 cases in the capital, with complaints of non-availability of beds in hospitals for patients and difficulty in getting the tests done in laboratories.

The Supreme Court had on Friday lashed out at the AAP government, describing as “horrific” the state of affairs in Delhi hospitals with bodies being stacked next to COVID-19 patients.

Taking note of the “gravity” of the COVID-19 situation, the Delhi High Court has also directed the AAP government and the Centre to increase the number of beds and ventilators for the coronavirus patients.

After the Supreme Court observation, the Arvind Kejriwal-led government said it accepts with utmost respect and sincerity the apex court’s remarks and pointed out that it was trying its best to set up better infrastructure and provide quality healthcare to all COVID-19 patients in the city.

Baijal has also formed a six-member panel to formulate a COVID management plan and suggest ways to ramp up medical infrastructure in the capital.

This comes close on the heels of Baijal’s recent assertions on hospital beds and testing, and overturning of two Delhi government orders — reserving hospital beds only for residents of Delhi and testing of only symptomatic patients.

The members on Baijal’s advisory committee are ICMR DG Balram Bhargava, AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria, National Disaster Management Authority members Krishna Vatsa, Kamal Kishore and others.

India saw the highest single-day spike of 11,929 novel coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the number of infections to over 3.20 lakh on Sunday, while the toll crossed the 9,000 mark with 311 more deaths, the Health Ministry said.

Children are disturbed by online studies

By

Priyanka Saurabh

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June 14, 2020

All schools around the world have also been closed due to lockdown. Examinations are held in schools in India in March and new classes start again in April. But due to the closure of the school, the children have not been able to study this time. Private schools in particular have taken up the issue of educating children through a digital medium. In which online classes are being taught to children by creating a WhatsApp group. But the reading material that has been created or is being sent in these mediums is not made keeping in mind the children.

Lack of proper textbooks

Most of the schools are sharing old uploaded videos with the children. Children are having trouble understanding this because the content is not consistent with the syllabus. By the way, many schools in the country are conducting online studies. But there are also many schools which are not well equipped, so they are unable to get online education. Anyway, for online studies, children also need to have mobiles and laptops. When only 24 percent of households in India have access to the internet, questions arise on the significance of online education.

In such a situation, it is natural for the parents of students deprived of online education to be worried. The school management wants the child not to be deprived of education during the lockdown. He should read his syllabus according to the new class. There are many practical difficulties in online studies, but in lockdown when opening a school is not free from danger, then the online class is the biggest recourse. Children have to sit at the screen for hours at home while studying online. Children are facing many challenges while studying online.

Problems with equipment and the Internet

The medium of instruction in most of the private schools is English which is very difficult for these children to understand on their own. The second major challenge is the lack of resources required for these children’s online classes. Online classes require Android phones/computers/tablets, broadband connection, printer, etc. Most rural children do not have the necessary equipment for digital classes due to the poor financial status of their families. Due to which they are not able to do classes while at present other classmates of these children are studying through online classes. Only a handful of families will have these devices.

An NGO called Local Circle has conducted a survey in which 23 thousand people from 203 districts took part. Out of which 43% said that they do not have things like computer, tablet, printer, router for online classes of children. Global studies show that only 24% of Indians have a smartphone. According to the National Sample Survey Report 17-18, 11% of households have a desktop computer / laptop / notebook / netbook / laptops or tablet. According to this survey, only 24% of Indian households have internet access, of which 42% in urban households and only 15% in rural households have access to internet services.

The utility of the internet also varies from state to state as states like Delhi, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, and Uttarakhand have internet access in more than 40% of households the same proportion in states like Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh Less than 20%. Schools are creating WhatsApp groups for digital learning and adding the numbers given to the children in the school records but these children do not have a phone, the numbers in the records are They belong to an elder of the family. Because these children do not have their phones but sometimes it happens that there is a phone for the whole house and which is mostly used by the head of the family, or there is no WhatsApp on the phone then how will the children be able to read.

Problems of children in rural areas

There is also a problem with the network. Due to the lockdown, the internet is being used a lot now, due to which the speed has been reduced. The families of these children also have a small amount of net plan, which repeatedly interrupts the net, in downloading reading material. Taking more time, the quality is also poor which makes it difficult for children to read and understand. Q.S. According to the survey, if you look at the network problem, the biggest problem in broadband/mobile is poor connectivity. The unavailability of electricity in rural areas is also a hindrance. According to a survey of villages conducted by the Ministry of Rural Development in 2017-18, only 47% of households in India get more than 12 hours of electricity while 33% get 9-12 hours of electricity and 16% of households get one to eight hours of electricity daily.

Yes, one thing is for sure that private educational institutions are charging fees by putting pressure on parents. Private schools have issued notices to parents to buy new books and then deposit fees. Fees are also being opposed by parents on social media and WhatsApp. The Ministry of Human and Resource Development should take this issue seriously. Indeed, the management of the institute is also having to bear other expenses including salary but the lack of teaching work in the school or college would have reduced the expenses considerably. The government should coordinate and make arrangements to safeguard the economic interests of both parties.

Mental and health problems

Apart from all these, online studies have started causing eye problems in children. The power to remember is also diminishing. Because the child saves everything on the computer. There is no reading from the book, in which the child should also remember. In the absence of teacher assessment, children are not able to work in the online curriculum with the same interest as they do in school. The way mobile has stopped us from remembering numbers. In the same way, online studies are losing children’s memory.

What to do now?

Psychoanalysts believe that online studies are good for secondary school children, but many playschools and elementary schools have also started online courses for young children. In such cases, parents need to be especially vigilant. Older children also need to be monitored. More than two months have passed since the lockdown. Sticking to mobiles and laptops at home most of the time can affect the creative ability of children. This will have a direct effect on the mental development of children.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of AFTERNOON VOICE and AFTERNOON VOICE does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.

Mumbaikars are huge taxpayers still govt and municipality don’t care to improve roads

By

Vaidehi Taman

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June 12, 2020

water logging, rain water, monsoon, mumbai, mumbaikars, rainwater, monsoon ready, bmc, uddhav thackeray, municipality — Image Courtesy: PTI

Every monsoon Mumbai roads are full of potholes. Due to this traffic increase, bikers sometimes give up their lives. No one expects a sudden pothole on highways, many accidents occur and nothing can be more unfortunate to anyone than losing a family member. Bad road condition is due to shoddy work done; I don’t think BMC cross checks once the road work is over. Same patches are mend for years and years. Main traffic roads are getting patched by paving blocks, maintaining quality by putting such blocks with heavy vehicles is simply foolish. There are millions of people who travel every day and face utmost difficulty in the most basic thing such as travelling from home to the workplace.

There was a long lockdown, people are in a hurry to get back to their bread earning. Almost all the reserves got absorbed in this unplanned long lockdown. Monsoon has arrived but exposed the authorities and government with one pouring. The city’s buying cars faster than it’s building roads. The number of vehicles on Mumbai’s roads has increased in thousands while the city’s total road length has not increased accordingly, even if the roads are increased in the recent past the population has over grown in the city, so controlling traffic is actually a faraway thing. A 10 per cent increase in car population increases parking woes by 25 per cent and traffic congestion by around 20 per cent. There is a need to implement schemes that put a premium on using vehicles in Mumbai. These schemes include the Bus Rapid Transport System and increased parking charges. The study said the number of vehicles in the Mumbai metropolitan region is expected to reach 75 lakhs by 2024. New York has 50 lakh vehicles while Beijing has 20 lakhs. Well, Mumbai will always remain jam and monsoon is another challenge to control the roadblock.

Massive traffic queues across the city, especially in areas that are badly flooded including Dadar, Parel, Sion, Andheri, Jogeshwari and Santacruz. Residents complained that brand new water pumping stations on which the civic body spent 200 crores failed to work after being damaged by rocks. Mumbai has once again stuck in water. BMC has been silent over the news this monsoon. This is strange. Every year, there is at least one picture of a BMC worker who is working towards clearing the choked drainage, the silent messages depicted in pictures but what is the point in it? Every year Government is making budgets for drainage and those people are doing their jobs. The ever-procrastinating people, who are not answerable to anybody, waste much of government funds. Thankfully, the privatization has spurred those workers to work hard and be answerable. For example, the railways, people working for the railways are now ‘lesser’ corrupt, they are, I would not defy it but the point of escalations has been brought up to a higher scale.

Just one or two rains hit Mumbai, but look at the conditions around, Railways station escalators are not protected against weather, there are water logs everywhere on the stations to metro and skywalk, tiles are broken and holes everywhere. Of course, there are attempts being made to ‘advance’ the facilities to passengers by installing escalators worth nearly 80 lakhs per set, which can speed up enough to cope with the rising demand of hurry for citizens. Ideally the escalators are powerful enough and require more electricity than an elevator, depending on the number of people who join in. So, what next? Fair of railway tickets too gone up, again that is the price we all are willing to pay for the facility given in return.

Scenario for railways commuters does require their employees to be disciplined and firm in their actions but someone should also keep up with the ownership to help railways spend our money wisely. More money spending schemes are coming up! Mumbai is also billed to have protected the monumental buildings. There are over 110 monuments in the city and each is derived in their own style, each of them needs protection in their own style and each style needs a special approach. Although, right now only the data is being compiled to know which monument will need what kind of facility for protection. We can witness that Taj Mahal has been going ‘yellowish’ and many credited the ‘acid rains’, earlier, which are mainly caused due to factories using thermal energy where the combustion rate of coal used is not even near 90%.

Whenever it pours thousands of commuters leaving for offices get caught unaware on reaching the suburban railway stations as trains get cancelled due to waterlogging of tracks, as services on all three railway lines – Central, Western and Harbour – always get cancelled. As every year, the civic body issues flood alert and keeps silent on their preparations. Large parts of Mumbai, including the central, western and eastern suburbs get flooded, and traffic comes to a standstill. Water levels at 91 major reservoirs nationwide are the lowest in a decade – no more than 29 per cent, water levels at Indian reservoirs are 71 per cent of last year, or 74 per cent of average storage over the last decade, the CWC data reveal.

The 91 major reservoirs contain 157.8 billion cubic metre (BCM) of water; the capacity of these reservoirs is 250 BCM. Another 400 BCM water is available for irrigation in India through groundwater, according to this answer given by the government in the Lok Sabha (the Lower House of Parliament) in July 2015. In July 2016 the city witnessed the worst water scarcity in a decade, and the waterlogs too were be much more as Sena-BJP wasted their entire tenure just accusing each other but none really bothered to care for the city. Then the BJP Government came up with Minister centric apps, they were talking about “Aache Din” to “Badal Raha India” but in reality, nothing moved, even after coming to power and ruling for five long years they were blaming previous government’s inefficiency. Well, the BJP came and went out of power doing nothing much towards waterlogs and potholes. Now the new Maha Vikas Aghadi government, they are yet to tackle COVID-19 cases and rain water has arrived with new challenge to them, hope this government lives up to our expectations.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Uddhav Thackeray warns Mumbaikar

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Afternoon Voice

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June 11, 2020

Uddhav Thackeray, Uddhav, Warns, Thackeray, Covid-19, Limitations, Lockdown, Restrictions, Lockdown Restrictions, Thackeray warns — Image Courtesy: Agency

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray warned that lockdown could be braced again in the state if the residents failed to honour the current level of limitations. His government has been insisting with the centre for the recommencement of local train services to facilitate the commute of personnel involved in the delivery of essential and emergency work.

Uddhav Thackeray gave a statement stating that, “We have been asking for the resumption of the local rail services from the Centre. The hospital staff and other workforce engaged in crucial and alternative services are finding it difficult to commute from far off areas to Mumbai. Some of them are not even able to report to the duty. The resumption of the locals is very important for the ease of this workforce.”

Thackeray said that though relaxations were important for the revival of the economy, the government may be compelled to withdraw them if the norms are not followed.

The CM said he had first raised the issue of the resumption of suburban rail services with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a video conference about a month ago. Thackeray also served a warning to people in the state to follow the restrictions put in place to check the rise of coronavirus disease failing which the state may be forced to clamp a hard lockdown to contain the virus which has already infected 90,787 people in the state, which is the highest among all Indian states.

Chief Minister Thackeray also held that, “The lockdown has been extended till June 30 with the relaxations moved out recently. People of Maharashtra have been cooperating well with the state government, but any type of violation of restrictions will force us to impose the lockdown again,” We were however shocked with the crowding witnessed at some places after the first phase of relaxations under Mission Begin Again came into effect.”

Earlier according to data released by Maharashtra Police, a total of 124,369 cases have been registered in the state under Section 188 of Indian Penal Code since March 22 for violation of coronavirus lockdown norms. Of these, about 846 accused were arrested in cases of assault on policemen.

Touchwood – The COVID cases coming under control in Maharashtra

By

Vaidehi Taman

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June 11, 2020

COVID-19, Coronavirus, Mumbai, BMC, Maharashtra, Coronavirus, Covid cases maharashtra, coronavirus maharashtra, aaditya thackeray, uddhav thackeray, uddhav — Image Courtesy: PTI

Amid scary videos and WhatsApp circulations, Thackeray cub and Maharashtra cabinet minister Aaditya came up with pleasant revelation about the spread of coronavirus in Mumbai, the city hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic in India. Thackeray Twitted that Mumbai’s Covid-19 fatality rate has lowered to three per cent, which is almost at par with the national average. Thackeray also said that the discharge rate in the city is now 42 per cent and the rate of doubling of cases in one of the worst-affected areas of Mumbai, Dharavi, has increased to 42 days. The doubling rate – the number of days it takes for positive cases to double – in Mumbai is 24.5 days, as against the national average of 16. Maharashtra is worst-affected in India by the coronavirus disease. The state’s tally crossed the 90,000 mark as 2,259 more infections were reported on Tuesday. Maharashtra’s case count stands at 90,787, of which 43,591 are active ones, according to the state health department. Let’s hope and assume that the minister is serious about his claims, and Mumbai gets rid of COVID-19.

Even as per reports published around more than 50,000 people have been screened at Mumbai airport including those arriving from Nepal, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia; in addition to those from Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Korea and japan. 85 passengers who showed symptoms were quarantined and later on, except two, who are under observation, all others were discharged. we all know; the population of Mumbai is too much as compared to its size. People sleep in layers in small rooms. Population density is76,790 per square mile, approximate Population is 14,350,000 that means 187 Square miles, world’s biggest slum is here in the city. Dharavi is the world’s most populated slum with a population of over one million people. They stay in huge numbers in small rooms. Some of the shacks are right on the gutter and nallahs. There is absolutely no practical way to implement social distancing. They have no money to keep themselves sanitized and they can’t quarantine themselves. For them, living a quarantine life is also inviting death. Which means, if a virus spreads in these areas then it’s almost impossible to contain it. It is happening. There are above 1600 cases already in Dharavi. Dharavi is in danger, more than any place on this earth. The death toll of the state has reached 3,289 after 120 casualties were reported, of which 49 were in the past two days, while the rest were between May 11 and June 6, as clarified by the state government. Tuesday was the ninth day wherein the state recorded over 100 deaths. Of them, Mumbai recorded 58, taking its toll to 1,638. The city saw an addition of 1,015 cases on Tuesday. The case count in Mumbai is 51,100. Of these, 26,391 are active cases. The current situation of Covid-19 was discussed in the state cabinet meeting. Though, the recovery rate in the state is showing constant improvement. It was 26.25% on May 20, and improved to 29.06% on May 24. It further increased to 43.28% on May 29 after as many as 8,381 patients were reported as recovered following the changes in norms to discharge patients.

As for Maharashtra I am still surprised that the number of cases are quite less considering the population of just one of the cities of Maharashtra that is Mumbai where even if a person sneezes or coughs and if the virus is spreading then there should be at least lakhs of cases of coronavirus easily affecting people. Not that I want more people to be affected by Corona, but this just gives me confidence that there is absolutely no need of panic and that corona is not a virus that easily spreads if every person takes personal care and hygiene, not just wearing masks. More so if you see more than any other place in India, Mumbai and Delhi airports are the ones which receive more flights from all over the world and hence more foreign passengers. So, if you see in the sense, either India is lucky not to have more corona cases or it proves that the corona virus doesn’t spread rapidly. Anyway, State governments are taking precautions and that’s one good thing. But how can you stop the lifelines of a city or state, that is local transport which is the place where a jam-packed crowd is there and interacts in all ways and no hygiene can help. And the state government and people are still slow in reacting to any precautions and not like Kerala. Kudos to the Kerala government and especially the people of Kerala who cooperates in all sense to the advisories especially the economically weaker sections like daily wage workers, auto rickshaw drivers. They are promptly supporting the Govt. and its directives rather than worrying about their daily income. While we see in Mumbai, Delhi and other places it is absolutely ridiculous. Neither the State Govt. is strict on implementing precautions nor the people. It’s a casual attitude. Can’t people do away with shopping, roaming around and creating a crowd wherever it is. This clearly shows that state government and owners are more worried about business than people’s health. Nobody understands the fact that even if 50% of people do not venture out and make a crowd the rest 50% can at least stay at a distance between two people so that the spreading of viruses decreases.

Furthermore, the fake news spread was way faster than the pandemic, some opposition party leaders were assigned to make fast noises and spreads. ‘Fake News Media’ and political opponents were hyping the coronavirus situation, there were videos and voices circulated heavily across social media. Mumbai’s battle against the coronavirus had many hindrances – large crowds, a stretched health system and inadequate infrastructure. But beyond these, familiar foes are rearing their heads: misinformation and fake news. Through its vast social media networks, a wave of inaccuracy is spreading on coronavirus, which causes an illness known as COVID-19. From offering unverified home remedies to tackle the virus, to floating fake advisories asking people to avoid foods such as ice cream and chicken, and sharing conspiracy theories, Indians’ phones are being flooded with misinformation. Above all how Maharashtra Chief Minister is incapable and how his government needs to be toppled, if such is the arrogance of people how one can bring harmony and health to state. What we all need to do is, cooperate and come out of the present situation.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

SC refuses to hear pleas to implement OBC quota in TN’s share of All India medical seats

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Afternoon Voice

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June 11, 2020

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain pleas of various political parties challenging the Centre’s decision not to grant 50 percent reservation to OBCs as per Tamil Nadu law in medical seats surrendered by the state in the All India Quota for undergraduate, postgraduate and dental courses in 2020-21. A bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao, Krishna Murari, and S Ravindra Bhat asked lawyers for Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Vaiko, Anbumani Ramadoss, CPI (M), Tamil Nadu Congress Committee and CPI to approach the Madras High Court with their pleas.

“You should withdraw this and go to the Madras High Court,” the bench said, adding that the liberty was granted to the political parties to do that. The political parties have challenged the decision of Centre not granting 50 percent reservation to OBC’s in seats surrendered by Tamil Nadu in the All India Quota for undergraduate, postgraduate medical and dental courses in a current academic session.

DMK, in its plea, had said that it was opposing the denial of implementation of 50 percent OBC policy of the state, other than in central government institutions. It said the Medical Council of India (MCI) regulations clearly contemplate adherence to state reservation laws while filling up the seats. The party said that the All India Quota seats are contributed by states surrendering seats in the government and private medical and dental colleges as per the MCI regulations. DMK had sought an ad-interim injunction restraining the Respondents from proceeding further with All India Counselling for PG seats pursuant to the NEET-PG 2020 results without following the 50 percent reservation for OBC quota in Tamil Nadu pending disposal of the plea. The party also sought direction for calling of the records of the Respondent pertaining to the Result of NEET-PG, 2020 published on May 9, 2020, by the National Board of Examinations relating to the filling up of the All India Quota and quashing of the same “The Petitioner (CPIM) is constrained to approach this court as the Respondents (Centre, MCI and others) herein have grossly failed to provide the statutory reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBC) i.e. Backward Classes (BC) and Most Backward Classes (MBC) and anomaly in granting reservation to SC-STs students in admissions to the Undergraduate and Post Graduate medical courses in all medical colleges in Tamil Nadu in the category of ‘state surrendered seats to the All India Quota’ in Government and private medical colleges other than the Central Government institutions,” the plea of CPI(M) had said.

Ruling AIADMK had alleged that there was no rational basis for not extending the benefit of 50 percent reservation for OBCs, as envisaged under the State laws of Tamil Nadu, to the State-captured seats in the All India Quota.

The Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) party said that in all past academic years since the inception of the All India Quota system, OBCs have been grossly underrepresented in the All-India-Quota seats in undergraduate, diploma, PG diploma and postgraduate medical colleges across the country.