National award-winning makeup artist Vikram Gaikwad dies at 61
Mumbai, May 10 (PTI): National award-winning makeup artist Vikram Gaikwad, known for his work in movies such as "83", “Uri: The Surgical Strike” and "Ponniyin Selvan", died on Saturday here at a hospital, his younger brother said. He was 61.
“He was hospitalised at Hiranandani Hospital in Powai three days ago due to BP issues. He passed away today at around 8:30 am. His BP was going low, and we were not able to revive him.
"He was quite well when he was admitted. We were not expecting that he would pass away so soon,” Dr Prasanna Paranjpe, Gaikwad’s younger brother, told PTI.
Gaikwad’s work spans across Hindi, Marathi, and South Indian films such as “83”, “Shakuntala Devi”, “Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior”, “Sanju”, “Dangal”, “PK”, “3 Idiots”, “Omkara”, “Balgandharva”, “Katyar Kaljat Ghusali”, “Ponniyin Selvan”, and “O Kadhal Kanmani”.
He won the National Award for best makeup artist in 2012 for Vidya Balan-starrer "Dirty Picture", followed by another win for Bengali movie "Jaatishwar" in 2014.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde condoled his death in a post on X, saying he brought life into characters with his artistry.
“National Award-winning, renowned makeup artist Vikram Gaikwad passed away today, leaving us in sorrow. With his departure, we have lost a magician who breathed life into characters on screen through his artistry in makeup.
"His mastery lay in effortlessly turning the impossible into reality, bringing to life the characters envisioned by directors through his makeup artistry,” he wrote.
Gaikwad's last rites will be performed at Shivaji Park crematorium in Dadar.
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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.
