Karnataka to float global tender to procure 2 crore COVID-19 vaccines
Bengaluru, May 13: The Karnataka government on Thursday announced floating a global tender for procuring two crore COVID-19 vaccines owing to supply shortage.
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said a Task Force has been set up to oversee the preparation for a probable third wave of COVID-19.
"The state has placed a purchase order for three crore doses of vaccines, two crore doses of Covishield and one crore doses of Covaxin.
We are floating global tenders for an additional two crores," Yediyurappa told reporters here.
He was briefing them about the various measures initiated by his government to deal with the pandemic and improving the health infrastructure in the state.
On the occasion, he said the government was appointing Prof Kang as an adviser on vaccination strategy.
"She Prof Kang is a member of several advisory committees for the World Health Organisation (WHO), mainly related to research and the use of vaccines," he added.
According to Yediyurappa, so far 1.10 crore doses have been supplied by the Centre, of which 99.5 lakh are Covishield vaccines and 10.9 lakh are Covaxin.
He said that 14.87 lakh beneficiaries have completed 6 weeks after taking the first dose of Covishield vaccine and are eligible for second one, whereas 5.10 lakh beneficiaries have completed four weeks after taking the first dose of Covaxin.
Thus, a total of 19.97 lakh people are eligible for second dose as on today.
The state government had on Wednesday announced suspension of the vaccination drive for people between the age group of 18 and 44 years due to the shortage of vaccine.
It said the available stock will be utilised to vaccinate people who are due for second dose.
The Chief Minister also explained the various measures adopted since the outbreak of COVID in the state last year.
He claimed that the recent lockdown-like restrictions brought down the infections in the state from over 50,000 to less than 40,000 now.
To meet the increased oxygen requirement, the government decided to increase the supply of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO), massive scaling of localised generation capacity through oxygen generators and large scale procurement of concentrators and cylinders.
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Ex-Army officer assaulted, robbed at gunpoint by woman he met through matrimonial website
Mathura(UP), Apr 5 (PTI): A retired Army colonel from Haryana has filed a police complaint here, alleging that he was held hostage, assaulted, looted and forced to participate in an "obscene video" at gunpoint with a woman he met through a matrimonial website, police said on Saturday.
The woman from Mathura, who was allegedly in on the plan to rob him, was working with other accomplices, the ex-armyman said in his complaint filed on Thursday.
According to Barsana Station House Officer (SHO) Raj Kamal Singh, Colonel Rajneesh Soni (retired), a resident of Gurugram, reported that he was contacted by a woman from Barsana on a matrimonial website in January. The woman allegedly agreed to marry him, and they began communicating.
The woman allegedly persuaded the colonel to visit Barsana on January 25, requesting that he visit the Radharani temple. When he arrived, she arranged for his stay at a guest house and took him on a tour of the area, including a visit to the temple, the complainant said.
After returning to the guest house, the woman and her accomplices allegedly told the colonel that her brother had been involved in an accident and they needed to leave immediately. They then led him to a waiting car.
"Once outside the town limits, the colonel alleges that he was attacked by the occupants of the car. They seized his phone, physically assaulted him, and forced him to contact relatives and friends to transfer money," the SHO said.
"He was then taken back to the guest house, where he was allegedly forced to participate in obscene videos and photographs at gunpoint. He was threatened that the videos would be made public if he reported the incident," the officer said.
The colonel has alleged that his purse, bag, gold chain, debit card and Rs. 12,000 in cash were stolen from the guest house.
After an unsuccessful attempt at locating the perpetrators himself, the colonel finally reported the incident to the Barsana police two days ago, he said.
"A case has been registered under relevant sections of the BNS and all facts are being investigated. Further action will be taken as per facts found in the investigation," the SHO said.
