BJP set to retain power in Arunachal Pradesh, SKM likely to secure victory in Sikkim
Itanagar/Gangtok: The BJP government in Arunachal Pradesh, led by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, seems poised to retain power as they have crossed the majority mark, leading in 30 seats in the initial trends. Additionally, the BJP has already secured 10 seats uncontested in the state. Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein have also secured victories in their respective constituencies.
According to data from the Election Commission, the Bharatiya Janata Party is leading in 30 seats in Arunachal Pradesh, including areas like Lumla, Kalaktang, Koloriang, Nacho, Likabali, Basar, Along (West), and Along (East). The majority mark in the Arunachal Assembly is 31 seats.
Other parties leading include the National People's Party (NPEP) with eight seats, People's Party of Arunachal (PPA) with two seats, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) with three seats, Congress with one seat, and Independents leading in two seats.
In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP secured 41 seats in Arunachal Pradesh. The Janata Dal (United) won seven seats, the National People's Party (NPP) secured five, Congress won four, and the People's Party of Arunachal (PPA) secured one seat. Two independents also emerged victorious. All except one Congress MLA, former Chief Minister Nabam Tuki, joined the BJP.
Meanwhile, in Sikkim, the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) is on track for a comfortable victory, having won 7 seats already and leading in 24 seats. The opposition Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) is leading in one seat.
Polling for 32 assembly seats in Sikkim took place simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections on April 19. In the 2019 Assembly elections, the SKM won 17 seats, while the SDF secured 15 seats. Exit polls predict the return of the SKM to power in the state.
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WHO declares global health emergency over Ebola outbreak in Congo, Uganda
Abuja (Nigeria) (AP): WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the Ebola disease outbreak in Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday after more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths.
In a post on X, the World Health Organisation said the outbreak does not meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, and advised against the closure of international borders.
Ebola is highly contagious and can be contracted via bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. The disease it causes is rare, but severe and often fatal.
Health authorities have confirmed the current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a rare variant of the Ebola disease that has no approved therapeutics or vaccines. Although more than 20 Ebola outbreaks have taken place in Congo and Uganda, this is only the third time the Bundibugyo virus has been reported.
Congo accounts for all except two of the cases, both of which were reported in neighbouring Uganda, the WHO said.
Officials first reported the spread of the disease in Congo's eastern province of Ituri, close to Uganda and South Sudan, on Friday. On Saturday, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported 336 suspected cases and 87 deaths.
“There are significant uncertainties regarding the true number of infected persons and geographic spread associated with this event at the present time. In addition, there is limited understanding of the epidemiological links with known or suspected cases,” Tedros said.
Uganda on Saturday confirmed one case it said was imported from Congo, and said the patient died at a hospital in Uganda's capital, Kampala, and the WHO said that a second case has been reported in Kampala. The two cases had no apparent links to each other, and both patients had travelled from Congo, it added.
The Bundibugyo virus was first detected in Uganda's Bundibugyo district during a 2007-2008 outbreak that infected 149 people and killed 37 people. The second time was in 2012 in an outbreak in Isiro, Congo, where 57 cases and 29 deaths were reported.
WHO's emergency declaration is meant to spur donor agencies and countries into action. However, the global response to previous declarations has been mixed.
In 2024, when the WHO declared mpox outbreaks in Congo and elsewhere in Africa a global emergency, experts at the time said it did little to get supplies like diagnostic tests, medicines and vaccines to affected countries quickly.
