Kerala couple drive car recklessly under influence of drugs; police park crane on road to stop them
Kottayam (Kerala), Feb 6: A couple who recklessly drove their car under the alleged influence of drugs and hit several vehicles here was caught after a crane was used to block the road they were moving on, police said on Tuesday.
The accused, identified as Arun and his wife Dhanusha from Kayamkulam, were taken into custody by Chingavanam police.
They drove the car dangerously at a high speed on the busy MC Road from Mariyappally to Chingavanam, police said. As the car hit several vehicles it passed, local people tried to stop them but the couple did not even slow down, they claimed.
On being informed by the locals, police rushed to the area and eventually stopped the rogue car by parking a crane across the road.
Once the car was compelled to come to a stop, the couple was reluctant to come out of the vehicle. Police then had to use force to drag them out, they said.
The two persons were under the influence of drugs, police said, adding that they seized five grams of ganja from the car.
Traffic was disrupted for some time on the busy road due to the incident.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
