Does being prime minister mean he is dictator of country: CM Siddaramaiah
Hassan (Karnataka), Nov 7: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday wondered whether being a prime minister means becoming a dictator, hours after his predecessor B S Yediyurappa accused him of making "irresponsible" comments about the Narendra Modi government.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru earlier in the day, Yediyurappa hit out at Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar for their comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government.
"If they have the arrogance to criticise the prime minister who is respected globally, people will teach them a lesson," the former chief minister said.
Hitting back, Siddaramaiah said, "Does being a prime minister mean he is the dictator of the country? Should he (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) speak against me?
"What is there to talk about Karnataka during the election campaigning in Madhya Pradesh? There is an election happening in Madhya Pradesh, why is he talking about Karnataka?" Siddaramaiah asked.
When asked whether Siddaramaiah thought that PM Modi was scared of him, the Karnataka chief minister said, "It is possible. I also think so."
To the allegation that he often blamed the BJP-led Union government for everything, including the drought, the chief minister said he was only asking for money from the Centre to deal with the severe drought in the state.
"Shouldn't we ask for money? Is asking for money equivalent to picking up a fight? We live in a federal system. The Centre and the states should function in coordination. If there is drought in Karnataka, then the Centre has a responsibility (towards it)," Siddaramaiah said.
He pointed out that the people of Karnataka pay taxes to the Centre and hence they too have the right to ask for money.
"Who pays taxes to Centre? Is it not the people of the state who pay taxes to the Centre? Is there any other set of people who pays taxes to the Centre?" Siddaramaiah posed.
The chief minister said the state has suffered a crop loss to the tune of Rs 33,700 crore due to drought. Accordingly, Karnataka has demanded Rs 17,900 crore from the Centre, he said.
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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.
