Tripura: 18 policemen injured in violent protest against Waqf Act, 8 agitators arrested
Agartala, Apr 12 (PTI): At least 18 police personnel, including an SDPO, were injured as a protest rally demanding the rollback of the Waqf (Amendment) Act turned violent in Tripura's Unakoti district on Saturday, police said.
Kailashahar Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Jayanta Karmakar was among those injured in the violence in Kubjar area. Eight protesters were arrested for their alleged involvement in the attack on police personnel.
Around 4,000 people under the banner of 'Joint Movement Committee', headed by Congress' Unakoti district president Md Badruzzaman, took out a massive rally demanding the revocation of the Act.
"A scuffle took place between the protesters and the security personnel. Soon, the situation turned violent as the agitators pelted the law enforcers with stones and bottles. At least 18 police personnel, including SDPO Jayanta Karmakar, were injured in the attack," Kailashahar police station officer-in-charge Sukanta Sen Chowdhury said.
As the situation was going out of control, the police resorted to lathi-charge and burst tear gas shells to disperse the violent protesters, he said.
"We have lodged an FIR over the attack on police personnel. So far, eight people have been arrested in connection with the case. Further investigation is underway," the officer said.
Later, at a press conference, Badruzzaman claimed that they had organised a peaceful rally.
"But a group with vested interests turned our peaceful rally violent to malign us. We will continue our movement on the demand for rollback of the Waqf (Amendment) Act," he said.
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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.
