Karnataka govt decides to increase tests in Bengaluru to 1.3 lakh daily
Bengaluru(PTI): In view of alarming rise in COVID-19 cases in the city, the Karnataka government on Tuesday decided to increase tests in Bengaluru to 1.3 lakh daily.
Speeding up booster doses to frontline workers and authorising the district authorities to decide on shutting down or running schools if infections increase among students were among the major decisions taken by the government.
"In view of the rising COVID cases, Karnataka decided to increase tests from 1.1 lakh per day to 1.3 lakh per day or above in Bengaluru.Those in home isolation should be under observation. We should be careful till they fully recover because 95 per cent people today are under home isolation," state Home Minister Araga Jnanendra briefed reporters after a virtual meeting chaired by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on the prevailing COVID situation in the state.
According to health officials, the state is conducting about 1.5 lakh daily tests in entire Karnataka including 1.25 lakh RT-PCR tests. However, Bengaluru alone is contributing about 80 to 90 per cent of cases daily, compelling government to come out with Bengauru specific rules, they added.
Jnanendra said the government has decided to speed up giving the booster dose to the frontline workers such as health workers and police.
Regarding school children, the home minister said the infection is increasing among children.
"Cases are increasing in hostels and residential schools. So, the deputy commissioners and the local administration have been delegated powers whether to run or shut down schools," Jnanendra said.
It was also decided in the meeting that more medicines should be procured and stocked, so that there is no shortage of medicines in treating children. Further, all the hospitals at Taluk and district level should have special wards and beds for children, the minister said, adding that the education and health department officials were asked to conduct a general health checkup in schools every fortnight.
In the meeting, it was decided to decentralise markets to avoid congestion, educating people to wear masks and maintain social distancing.
The police have been directed to prevent protests and demonstrations and ensure that people do not congregate, Jnanendra said. He added that police should not allow such events to take place.
A statement issued by the office of the Chief Minister said that instructions have been issued for monitoring the health of those home quarantined and timely distribution of health kits for them.
Bommai wanted the officials to strengthen the triaging to ascertain whether an infected person needs hospitalisation or not immediately on getting the test report, the statement read.
"It was decided to utilise the services of House Surgeons and Final Year Nursing students in the Home Isolation and Triaging process. Further 27 Covid Care Centres will be started in Bengaluru immediately," it said.
In view of Vaikuntha Ekadashi and Makara Sankranti festivals, it was decided that religious events can be allowed by strictly adhering to COVID norms, the Home Minister said.
He added that in case violation of COVID guidelines occur in temples then cases will be registered.
According to Jnanendra, a few other decisions will be taken after a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 13.
Besides Bommai and Jnanendra, Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar and Primary, Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh and senior officials attended the virtual meeting.
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Suspected drones observed along IB in Jammu's Samba, being engaged: Army
Jammu, May 12 (PTI): Security forces are engaging suspected drones observed along the International Border in Samba district of Jammu region on Monday, an Army said.
This fresh incident of drone activity along the borderline comes barely hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first address to the nation following Operation Sindoor and the meeting of the DGMOs of India and Pakistan.
The Army, however, said there is no need to be alarmed.
“A small number of suspected drones have been observed near Samba in J&K. They are being engaged,” it said.
In the backdrop of the situation, several areas witnessed blackouts in Samba, Kathua, Rajouri, and Jammu.
Lights were switched off at the cave shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi and along its track as a precautionary measure, sources said.
On Monday, talks between the DGMOs were held during which issues related to the continuing commitment that both sides must not fire a single shot or initiate any aggressive or inimical action against each other were discussed, the Indian Army said.
It was also agreed that both sides would consider immediate measures to ensure troop reduction along the borders and in forward areas, it added.
The situation remained largely peaceful across Jammu and Kashmir, with no incidents of ceasefire violation reported along the Indo-Pak border Sunday overnight — marking the first calm night after 18 days of hostilities following the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people — mostly tourists — dead.
India and Pakistan on Saturday reached an understanding to cease all firing and military actions on land, air, and sea with immediate effect, following four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes that brought the two countries to the brink of full-scale war.
Eighteen days of intense hostilities following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, which brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war, ended with a ceasefire that restored calm along the Line of Control, the International Border, and the hinterland in Jammu and Kashmir. The Army thwarted Pakistan’s Hamas-style kamikaze drone attacks during the escalation.
Since the night of April 24, hours after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, Pakistani troops repeatedly targeted Indian positions along the LoC — beginning in the Kashmir Valley and quickly expanding to the Jammu region.
The latest hostilities began in the northern districts of Kupwara and Baramulla in the Kashmir Valley, before spreading southwards to Rajouri, Poonch, Akhnoor, and the Pargwal sector along the International Border in Jammu district. The firing affected five border districts — Baramulla, Kupwara, Poonch, Rajouri, and Jammu.
The recent round of cross-border firing further undermined the ceasefire agreement reached in February 2021, which has largely been seen as ineffective due to Pakistan’s frequent violations along the 740-km-long LoC.
The April 22 terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people — mostly tourists — in Pahalgam’s Baisaran valley, triggered a strong response from the central government.
The India-Pakistan border stretches over 3,300 kilometers, divided into three segments: the International Border (IB), spanning about 2,400 km from Gujarat to Akhnoor in Jammu; the 740-km-long Line of Control (LoC) that divides Jammu and Kashmir; and the 110-km-long Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), which separates the Siachen Glacier region.
WATCH: OP Sindoor continues. Minutes after PM Speech.
— Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) May 12, 2025
A small numbers of suspected drones being observed near Samba in J&K. Being engaged . pic.twitter.com/jmGmRkmQ26
