Put under house arrest, prevented from offering Friday prayers: Mirwaiz Umar Farooq
Srinagar (PTI): Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday said he was put under house arrest and not allowed to offer the congregational prayers at the Jamia Masjid here.
The Hurriyat chief was scheduled to visit the Jamia Masjid in the Nowhatta locality of the city to offer the congregational Friday prayers. But, he claimed, he was not allowed to come out of his residence in the Nigeen area of the city.
Mirwaiz, who is Kashmir's chief cleric, delivers a sermon at the historic mosque on Fridays.
"Yet again, this Friday put under house arrest and barred from offering prayers at Jama Masjid. It's is both heartbreaking and outrageous that authorities continue to trample on my basic religious rights at their will," the Mirwaiz said in a post on X.
He also posted a copy of a resolution formulated by the Mutahida Majlis Ulema (MMU) -- an amalgam of several religious bodies -- against the Waqf Amendment Act.
"Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulama Jammu & Kashmir, expresses its concern regarding several provisions of the new law, which are being widely viewed by the Muslim community as affecting the established and religious character of the Waqf institution in India," the resolution reads.
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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.
