Karnataka govt launches coronavirus info campaign, advises people to greet with 'namaste'
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Wednesday started a campaign called 'Namaste over Handshake' that encourages people to greet in the traditional Indian style, to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
The campaign also includes health advice on how people can protect themselves from the infection by adopting hygiene practices such as regularly washing hands to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
As part of the campaign, the state health and family welfare department has uploaded a poster on the social media, featuring a 'Bharatnatyam' dancer draped in a red saree saying 'Namaste'.
"Use Namasthe to greet others, fight against corona" read a message on the poster online.
The poster has health helpline numbers (104 and 011- 23978046) for public queries on the viral disease, which has claimed 4,251 lives worldwide.
A health department official told PTI that as part of the campaign, posters have been uploaded on social media and it would be printed and despatched to different districts to be put up at important junctions.
"We had been working on this idea. Kerala has already done it. They are using Kathakali dansseus whereas we are using a Bharatanatyam dancer as our model," the official said.
Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar too had insisted that people should adopt 'Namasthe' or 'Namaskara' to greet people instead of handshakes or hugs.
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No unannounced load shedding in Kerala, outages due to overload, says Minister
Palakkad (PTI): Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on Saturday said there was no unannounced load shedding in the state, attributing recent power interruptions to temporary overload caused by high consumption.
Clarifying concerns raised from various parts of the state, the minister said the disruptions are not deliberate but occur when demand peaks, particularly between 10 pm and 11 pm.
"It is not being done intentionally. Power consumption has risen sharply, and when there is excessive and indiscriminate usage, the system experiences overload, leading to natural supply interruptions," he told reporters here.
His remarks come amid complaints that several areas have been witnessing frequent power cuts, often lasting around 15 minutes and occurring multiple times during the night.
Krishnankutty said the state's power demand has crossed 6,195 MW, putting pressure on the supply system. He added that around 70 per cent of Kerala's electricity is procured from outside, and existing power banking arrangements have been exhausted.
"We have approached the Regulatory Commission seeking permission to purchase more power. However, this will come at a higher cost," he said.
The minister said the government is trying to avoid increasing electricity tariffs and urged consumers to exercise restraint in usage to help manage the situation.
Responding to opposition criticism over the ruling LDF's earlier claims of a decade without power cuts, he said the current situation is not unique to Kerala.
A power crisis is emerging across the country, he said, and sarcastically asked the Opposition to take note of the role of natural factors in this.
Krishnankutty expressed confidence that the situation would improve within two days, while cautioning that long-term energy security would depend on enhancing in-state power generation.
He also warned that future generations could face serious challenges if adequate electricity production capacity is not developed within Kerala.
