Karnataka bandh: Passengers face harrowing time due to cancellation of flights, bus services
Bengaluru (PTI): As many as 44 flights to and from the Kempegowda International Airport here were cancelled owing to the Karnataka bandh over the Cauvery water sharing issue with Tamil Nadu, airport authorities said on Friday.
Similarly, state transport corporations too cancelled many of their bus services, especially in the Cauvery basin districts of Mysuru, Mandya and Chamarajanagar, where the bandh had the most impact. Some passengers had a harrowing time as they missed their flights, buses and trains due to the day-long shutdown. Many passengers were distraught following the cancellation of flights and bus services.
"We cancelled 44 flights today. They include 22 flights to and an equal number of flights from Bengaluru due to the strike," an airport official told PTI.
The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) said there were only 59.88 per cent bus operations in southern parts of Karnataka.
The worst-hit KSRTC divisions in terms of operations were Mysuru and Chamarajanagar.
Against the scheduled departure of 447 buses, only seven plied in Mysuru while in Chamarajanagar, eight out of 247 bus services operated.
Mandya, Chikkamagaluru and Bengaluru witnessed 37.25 per cent, 51.49 per cent and 57.39 per cent operations, respectively, against the scheduled departures.
Bus stands and railway stations in southern Karnataka and the airport in Bengaluru wore a deserted look. Farmers and pro-Kannada organisations staged protests outside the airport as well.
A group from pro-Kannada organisations gathered near the arrival gate of Kempegowda International Airport here to register their protest over the Cauvery water dispute. They started raising slogans following which they were taken into preventive detention by the Bengaluru Police.
"We have taken 12 people into preventive detention. They had gathered at the airport premises to register their protest over the Cauvery water dispute. They were detained and taken into preventive detention," a senior police officer said.
Similarly, agitation took place at bus stations where the activists staged demonstrations and raised slogans holding banners, posters and placards.
The agitators blocked many roads in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mandya and Chamarajanagar leading to a chaotic situation.
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'Low-quality' catheters supplied to West Bengal govt hospitals at high price, probe ordered
Kolkata (PTI): The West Bengal health department has launched a probe into the supplies of allegedly low-quality and locally made catheters at a high price to several government hospitals, posing a risk to the lives of patients undergoing treatment in these facilities, officials said.
Such central venous catheters (CVCs) were allegedly supplied to at least five medical colleges and hospitals in the state, defying allocation of international standard-compliant CVCs, they said.
The distribution company, which has been accused of supplying these catheters to government hospitals, admitted to the fault but placed the blame on its employees.
"We started checking stocks some time back and found these locally made CVCs in my hospital store. These catheters are of low quality as compared to those allocated by the state. We have informed the state health department," a senior official of the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital told PTI.
Low-quality catheters were also found in the stores of other hospitals, which indicates "possible involvement of insiders in the scam", a health department official said.
The low-quality CVCs were supplied by a distributor in the Hatibagan area in the northern part of Kolkata for the last three to four months, he said.
"Such kinds of local CVCs are priced around Rs 1,500 but the distributor took Rs 4,177 for each device," the official said.
A CVC is a thin and flexible tube that is inserted into a vein to allow for the administration of fluids, blood, and other treatment. It's also clinically called a central line catheter.
"An initial probe revealed that the distribution company Prakash Surgical had supplied the low-quality and locally manufactured catheters to several government hospitals instead of the CVCs of the government-designated international company.
"All the units will be tested and a proper investigation is on to find out who benefited from these supplies," the health department official said.
The distribution company blamed its employees for the supply of inferior quality catheters.
"I was sick for a few months. Some employees of the organisation made this mistake. We are taking back all those units that have gone to the hospitals. It's all about misunderstanding," an official of the distribution company told PTI.
According to another state health department official, a complaint was lodged with the police in this connection.
Asked about how many patients were affected by the usage of such low-quality CVCs, the official said, "The probe would also try to find that out".
According to sources in the health department, some of the staff of the hospitals' equipment receiving departments and some local officials of international organisations might be involved in the alleged irregularities.
