Two killed in poll-related clash in Anantapuram in AP
Amaravati: A ruling Telugu Desam party worker and another belonging to the main opposition YSR Congress were killed Thursday in a poll-related group clash in Anantapuramu district of Andhra Pradesh, police said.
The clash occurred at Veerapuram village under Tadipatri Assembly constituency in the afternoon.
The deceased have been identified as Pulla Reddy of YSR Congress party and Sidda Bhaskar Reddy of the TDP, according to police sources.
TDP president and chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu condemned the killing of his party worker and accused the YSR Congress of indulging in violence to win the election.
Countering this, the YSRC alleged that followers of local TDP MP and MLA, the JC brothers (MP J C Diwakar Reddy and MLA, J C Prabhakar Reddy), tried to rig the votes in a polling booth at Veerapuram.
Pulla Reddy was attacked with sickles, resulting in his death,the YSRC claimed.
Another YSRC worker was also injured in the incident, the party said in a statement.
Additional police forces have been rushed to the village to bring the situation under control.
Polling is in progress for 25 Lok Sabha and 175 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh.
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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.
