Bihar: Nitish Kumar downplays Lalu's 'doors are always open' remark
Patna, Feb 17: A day after Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad caused a flutter by saying "doors were always open for Nitish Kumar", Bihar Chief Minister on Saturday downplayed the issue and said he "maintained good relations with allies as well as opponents".
The JD(U) chief was replying to questions from journalists on the remark by Prasad, with whom he was seen warmly shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries inside the assembly premises on Thursday.
"I maintain good relations with allies and leaders of opposition parties. I shake hands with them whenever I meet them. That's all", Kumar said.
The CM said, "I don't think of who says what... Things were not going well, so I left them (RJD)".
On Friday, Lalu Prasad said, "doors are always open" for Nitish Kumar, days after the latter parted ways with the grand alliance.
Asked whether he will give another chance to Nitish in the future, Lalu said, "Ab aayenge toh dekhenge. Doors are always open".
When asked about cabinet expansion, Kumar said, "Ho Jayega (It will be done). Sab Theek Chal Raha Hai (things are going smoothly".
Sources in the NDA on Saturday indicated that Nitish Kumar's cabinet will be further expanded in two-three days to accommodate legislators belonging to other castes, minorities groups and women.
Those who are expected to be included in the cabinet are BJP leaders Shahnawaz Hussain, Nitin Nabin, Rampreet Paswan, Janak Ram, Shreyashi Singh and JD (U) leaders Sunil Kumar Singh, Madan Sahni, Lesi Singh, Sheila Mandal, Jayant Raj, Ashok Choudhary, said a senior leader of JD(U) on the condition of anonymity.
Responding to queries about the state government's latest order to review all decisions taken by the departments headed by former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav and two RJD ministers Lalit Yadav and Ramanand Yadav, the CM said, "Irregularities (Gadbadiyaan) have taken place ... we will not tolerate this. Things are being investigated. I will keep doing development works for the overall growth of the state."
In a letter dated February 16, issued by the cabinet secretariat department headed by the CM, officials of the health, road construction, urban development and housing and rural works departments have been asked to review the decisions taken during the previous grand alliance government in the state. These departments were headed by Tejashwi Yadav.
Besides, the government has also asked top officials of public health engineering department (PHED) and mines and geology department to review the decisions taken by former RJD ministers- Lalit Yadav and Ramanand Yadav - in the previous government.
Kumar also said he agreed with the forecast of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the BJP-led coalition will win more than 400 seats in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
"Yes, BJP will definitely win more seats this time compared to Lok Sabha seats it won in the 2019 polls. Mujhe Pura Bharosa Hai (I am fully confident)".
On alleged cracks in the opposition INDIA alliance, Kumar said, "They (leaders of INDIA bloc) were not doing anything that is the reason that cracks are developing. The name (INDIA) given to this alliance was not my choice at all. They decided on their own. Now, I have nothing to do with them. I am back here (NDA). Now, I am not bothered about what they are saying".
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Bird flu: Karnataka completes 10-day H5N1 surveillance, containment operation
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government has successfully completed a 10-day intensive surveillance and containment operation following the detection of the H5N1 Avian Influenza outbreak here, officials said on Saturday.
The outbreak was reported in the State Poultry Rearing Training Centre in Mathkuru village, Hesaraghatta, on April 14, they said.
The surveillance was conducted by the Department of Health and Family Welfare of the state government in coordination with the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services Department, officials said.
According to an official statement, once the outbreak was confirmed, following laboratory reports from the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD-Bhopal), State and District Rapid Response Teams along with Hesaraghatta and Sonnenahalli PHC (Primary Health Centres) teams were immediately deployed.
An infected zone of 0-3 km and a surveillance zone of 3-10 km radius was established. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, culled all the birds and safely disposed of eggs and of contaminated feed, adhering to national and international biosecurity protocols, it said.
The health department said the surveillance zone from the infective focus in the 10 km radius, a total population of 28,172 across 22 villages was surveyed from day 1 to day 10. Multiple rounds of surveillance were conducted and sanitation activities were completed as per protocol.
During the surveillance period, nasopharyngeal samples collected from all quarantined staff on Day 5, sent to NIV-Bengaluru, were found to be negative for H5N1, it said.
On day 10, nasopharyngeal samples were collected and the results are awaited. No human case of H5N1 infection has been detected in the infected or surveillance zones, the health officials said.
"All healthcare facilities in Bengaluru have been instructed to continue ILI/SARI (Influenza-Like Illness/Severe Acute Respiratory Infection) case surveillance, and ensure adequate stocks of PPE, triple-layer medical masks, oseltamivir, viral transport medium, and throat swab kits," it said.
The Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services issued a Sanitization Certificate on April 21, officials said.
"No poultry activity will be undertaken for a period of 90 days as a precautionary measure. During the three months of surveillance, the entire area of the farm will be repeatedly disinfected by fumigation (indoors) or sprays (open place) every 15 days," it further stated.
The public has been advised to avoid handling or consuming meat or eggs from sick or dead poultry and report sightings of sick or dead birds promptly to local veterinary or health authorities.
Ensure poultry meat and eggs are thoroughly cooked before consumption, as proper cooking effectively inactivates the virus, they said.
"The public is advised to follow official health advisories and avoid spreading unverified information," the department added.
