CM Siddaramaiah urges people to use green crackers to check pollution, avoid fire accidents
Bengaluru, Nov 12: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday appealed to people of the state to use only green crackers to avoid fire accidents, and check pollution that can complicate the health of patients with respiratory and cardio-related ailments.
Greeting people on the occasion of Deepavali, he said the festival symoblises the journey from darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge.
The CM, however, advised people to be cautious while handling crackers in order to avoid any untoward incident due to carelessness.
Siddaramaiah reminded people to use only green crackers.
"The state government has given permission to use green crackers to check air and sound pollution, and fire accidents. Various chemicals used in the crackers lead to many health complications," Siddaramaiah said in a video message.
"The air and sound pollution cause severe health hazard to those suffering from asthma, lung and heart diseases. Birds and animals undergo silent pain. Hence, I appeal to the citizens that they must use only green crackers," he added.
Siddaramaiah's message on crackers came against the backdrop of a major fire in a cracker godown-cum-shop at Attibele, the border town of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on the outskirts of Bengaluru on October 8, which killed 14 people.
Every year, many people, especially children get eye injuries while bursting crackers.
ಬೆಳಕಿನ ಹಬ್ಬ ದೀಪಾವಳಿ ಅಜ್ಞಾನದ ಅಂಧಕಾರ ತೊಡೆದು ಸುಜ್ಞಾನದ ಬೆಳಕು ಹರಿಸಲಿ ಎಂದು ಹಾರೈಸುತ್ತೇನೆ.
— CM of Karnataka (@CMofKarnataka) November 12, 2023
ಹಣತೆಗಳನ್ನು ಬೆಳಗಿ, ಹಸಿರು ಪಟಾಕಿಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾತ್ರವೇ ಸಿಡಿಸಿ ಸುರಕ್ಷಿತವಾಗಿ ದೀಪಾವಳಿಯನ್ನು ಆಚರಿಸಿ.
ನಾಡಿನ ಸಮಸ್ತ ಜನತೆಗೆ ದೀಪಾವಳಿಯ ಶುಭಾಶಯಗಳು.
- ಮುಖ್ಯಮಂತ್ರಿ @siddaramaiah#ದೀಪಾವಳಿ #Deepavali pic.twitter.com/ZaeN6JmW9s
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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.
