Modi in J&K: Internet suspended, schools closed
Srinagar, May 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Leh town of the Ladakh region on Saturday beginning his day-long visit to Jammu and Kashmir amid hightended security as authorities suspended internet services and shut down schools and colleges for the day.
Modi was received at the Leh Airport by Governor N.N. Vohra and Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti.
As separatists called for protest march to Srinagar's city centre Lal Chowk against Modi's visit, the authorities suspended mobile internet services across the Kashmir Valley as a precautionary measure, police said.
Restrictions were also imposed in several areas in Srinagar. All schools and colleges were shut for the day.
Separatists leaders, including Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umer Farooq have been placed under house arrest while Yasin Malik has been taken into preventive custody.
The Prime Minister has a hectic schedule that includes the unveiling of a plaque to mark the commencement of work on the Zojila Tunnel, India's longest road tunnel and Asia's longest bi-directional tunnel.
The state-of-the-art Zojila Tunnel would provide all weather connectivity between the Ladakh region, that remains cut off from the rest of the country during the winter months.
It will cut down the time taken to cross the Zojila pass from three-and-a-half hours to just 15 minutes, besides providing all-round economic and socio-cultural integration of the region. It also has immense strategic importance, an announcement said.
Modi would also attend the closing ceremony of the birth centenary celebration of Buddhist spiritual leader Kushok Bakula Rinpoche in Leh.
He will also dedicate the 330 MW Kishanganga hydropower project to the nation, at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) in Srinagar during the day. Besides, laying the foundation stone of the four lane 41.2-km long Srinagar Ring Road.
In Jammu city, Modi will lay the foundation stone of the Pakul Dul Power Project and the four lane 58.2-kilometre-long Jammu Ring Road.
Ring Roads in Srinagar and Jammu are aimed at reducing traffic congestion and making road travel safer, faster, more convenient and more environment friendly.
Modi will also inaugurate the Tarakote Marg and Material Ropeway of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board that will facilitate pilgrims visiting the shrine.
The Prime Minister will also attend the Convocation of the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology in Jammu.
After a busy day, Modi will fly back to New Delhi in the evening.
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HMPV cases: CM Siddaramaiah directs officials to take precautionary measures
Bengaluru (PTI): With two cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) detected in Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said he has directed the health and medical education departments to take all the precautionary measures.
"There is information on HMPV or China virus infection in Karnataka. I have instructed the health department to take precautionary measures, I have also spoken to Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao. We -- Health and Medical Education departments -- will take all the precautionary measures to control it," Siddaramaiah said.
Briefing reporters here, he said the infections have been detected in two children. "Though it is not a dangerous virus, precautionary measures need to be taken."
"Whatever measures the health department suggests, the government will support all those measures."
The Indian Council of Medical Research has detected two cases of HMPV in Karnataka through routine surveillance for multiple respiratory viral pathogens, the Union health ministry earlier said on Monday.
A three-month-old female infant with a history of bronchopneumonia was diagnosed with HMPV after being admitted to Baptist Hospital in Bengaluru. She has already been discharged, the ministry said.
An eight-month-old male infant with a history of bronchopneumonia tested positive for HMPV on January 3 after being admitted to Baptist Hospital. He is now recovering, it said.
Neither of the patients have any history of international travel.
Meanwhile, the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) here has urged people not to panic as the virus is not as transmissible as Covid-19.
Emphasising that the respiratory virus primarily affects children, causing infections similar to the common cold, the directorate said in a release that hospitals have been instructed to report influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) cases.
To prevent escalation of the spread of the virus, people are advised to cover mouth and nose while coughing or sneezing, wash hands frequently with soap, avoid public places if symptomatic and close contact with sick persons.
The advisory further urged people not to reuse tissue papers or handkerchiefs, share towels and linen and avoid spitting in public places.
HMPV causes flu-like symptoms including cough, fever, nasal congestion, and shortness of breath. In more severe cases, it can lead to bronchitis or pneumonia, especially in young children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals.
The virus spreads through respiratory droplets, close personal contact, and touching surfaces contaminated with the virus followed by touching the mouth, nose, or eyes, it added.
