Covid cases rise in Bengaluru; Nine-month-old tests positive, Karnataka issues advisory
Bengaluru: Karnataka's Health Department has issued an advisory amid a gradual increase in Covid-19 cases in Bengaluru, with 32 out of the state's 35 reported cases this year originating from the city. Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao on Friday urged the public to follow preventive measures, although the situation remains under control.
“Out of 35 cases in the state so far, 32 are from Bengaluru,” said Minister Rao. While calling the rise concerning, he emphasized that no emergency has developed yet. “People should follow Covid-appropriate behaviour to limit further spread,” he added.
The Health Department has advised pregnant women, children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals to wear face masks when visiting crowded places. The use of hand sanitizers and maintaining hygiene have also been recommended for the general public. The Minister further advised those showing symptoms of Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) to get tested for Covid-19 to ensure early treatment and prevent transmission.
Among the new cases is a nine-month-old baby from Hoskote, near Bengaluru, who tested positive on May 22 via a Rapid Antigen Test. The child is being treated at Vani Vilas Hospital and is reportedly in stable condition with no complications, according to health officials.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah expressed concern over a potential uptick in cases nationally and urged the Central government to act swiftly, citing rising infections in countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
“There is a possibility of rising Covid-19 cases here as well. The Centre must take proactive measures in response to the global trend,” the Chief Minister stated.
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Our relationship with both India and Pakistan is 'good': US
New York/Washington (PTI): America’s relationship with both India and Pakistan is “good”, the US State Department has said, asserting that the diplomats are "committed to both nations".
Speaking at a briefing on Tuesday, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that the US working with both nations is good news for the region and the world, and will promote a beneficial future.
“I would say that our relationship with both nations is as it has been, which is good. And that is the benefit of having a President who knows everyone, talks to everyone, and that is how we can bring differences together in this case. So it's clear that the diplomats here are committed to both nations,” Bruce said.
She was responding to a question on the possibility of increased US assistance to Islamabad in terms of arms sales following Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir’s meeting with Trump, and whether this was coming at the cost of Trump's relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Referring to the May conflict between India and Pakistan, Bruce added, “Obviously, we had an experience with Pakistan and India when there was a conflict, one that could have developed into something quite horrible.”
She said that there was "immediate concern and immediate movement" with Vice President J D Vance, President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in “addressing the nature of what was happening….we described the nature of the phone calls, the work that we did to stop the attacks and to then bring the parties together so we could have something that was enduring."
She also claimed that top leaders in the US were involved in “stopping that potential catastrophe.”
New Delhi has been maintaining that India and Pakistan halted their military actions following direct talks between their militaries without any mediation by the US.
Bruce added that the recent peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan “follows negotiated peace arrangements between Cambodia and Thailand, Israel and Iran, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, India and Pakistan, Egypt and Ethiopia and Serbia and Kosovo.”
Meanwhile, in an interview on Tuesday, Rubio said that “credit goes to” Trump for helping bring several conflicts around the world to an end.
Trump says he wants “to be the President of peace. And so any time we see a conflict where we think we can make a difference, we get involved, and we’ve had good success in that regard. India-Pakistan, Thailand-Cambodia, the peace deal with Azerbaijan and Armenia, just a few days ago,” he said in an interview with ‘Sid and Friends in the Morning’.
