Karnataka caste census: Panel prepares sixty survey questions to be posed to seven crore people
Bengaluru: With about 1,800 castes listed and 60 survey questions, the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes is gearing up to launch the socio-economic survey of the nearly 7 crore population from September 22.
In preparation for the massive exercise, household mapping is currently underway, and a handbook has been printed to aid in the training process. “We discussed having around 70 questions in the beginning, which has been brought down to about 60. The handbook has been printed for use in training teachers and master trainers,” The Hindu quoted Commission sources as saying.
The training for master trainers will commence on September 8, followed by training for nearly 1.6 lakh school teachers, who will serve as enumerators in the house-to-house survey, starting September 12.
The Energy Department, which is providing geo-tagged household data, has already completed more than 35% of the mapping, and has committed to delivering the full list of households by September 15.
Earlier, the Commission had published a provisional list of 1,400 castes and sub-castes, inviting objections from the public. In response, several communities reportedly submitted requests to add omitted names or alternate names/synonyms for their castes.
The commission had deliberately dropped the names of those castes that had less than 10 households from the published list of 1,400 castes, and a request had come to include them. “We are considering their requests. We expect the caste list to exceed just over 1,800 in the State at the start of the survey. We will also include the list of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the final list,” The Hindu quoted Commission sources as saying.
Despite the scale of the upcoming door-to-door survey and concerns raised over limited preparation time, Commission officials remain confident. They mentioned that advanced technologies will be used to conduct the survey and monitor its functioning. “If a household is left out of the survey, it can be identified using geo-tagging. We will complete the survey on schedule,” they added.
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4 children test HIV positive in MP govt hospital; contaminated blood transfusion suspected
Satna/Bhopal (PTI): Four children suffering from thalassemia have tested HIV positive at Satna District Hospital in Madhya Pradesh allegedly due to contaminated blood transfusions, officials said on Tuesday.
The case is four months old and an investigation is underway into it, an official said.
Officials suspect the use of contaminated needles or blood transfusions for the spread of infection to the children.
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MP Health Minister Rajendra Shukla told reporters in Bhopal that he has ordered a probe into the matter and sought a report.
“It is also being investigated whether the blood transfusion took place in other hospitals also or only in the government hospital,” he said.
The affected children, aged between 12 and 15 years, received blood transfusions from the hospital's blood bank, as per an official.
Devendra Patel, in-charge of the blood bank at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel District Hospital in Satna, said four children have tested HIV positive and an investigation is underway to determine how they got infected.
"Either an infected needle was used or a blood transfusion occurred. These are the two main reasons I believe. Blood transfusion seems to be the most likely cause," he told PTI Videos.
All these children suffer from thalassemia, and some have received 80 or 100 blood transfusions, he said.
A family member of one of the affected children said that their child was found to be HIV positive during a routine checkup about four months back, and he has been receiving medication, but it had proven to be of no use.
After taking the medication for HIV, the child starts vomiting, feels low and becomes ill, he said.
After the four children were detected with HIV infection, their family members were also tested and the results came out negative, he added.
The Opposition Congress targeted the government over the matter and demanded the resignation of Health Minister Shukla.
Speaking to reporters in Bhopal, Congress MLA and former minister Sachin Yadav claimed such incidents were continuously occurring in Madhya Pradesh.
Earlier, a case of toxic cough syrup came to light in Chhindwara, followed by incidents of rat bites at hospitals in Indore and Satna, and now children have been given HIV-infected blood, he said.
"The health minister is unable to manage the department. He should resign. A murder case should be filed against those responsible for the Satna incident," Yadav said.
Senior Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma termed it a failure of the government. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's government has no connection with ground realities, he charged.
"Somewhere rats are roaming in hospitals, somewhere children are being given HIV-infected blood. Instead of preventing HIV, you are spreading it. Mohan Yadav should wake up from his slumber. Children are the nation's heritage and should be taken care of," he added.
