Attendee at political summit featuring Trump has coronavirus
Washington: A person who attended a gathering of top US political conservatives including President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence has tested positive for the new coronavirus, officials said.
The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is one of the country's largest annual gatherings of political conservatives, attracting thousands, and in addition to Trump and Pence the February 26-29 event near Washington also featured several cabinet members and top White House officials.
"The exposure occurred previous to the conference. A New Jersey hospital tested the person, and CDC confirmed the positive result," the event's organizer American Conservative Union tweeted on Saturday, referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The individual is quarantined and under medical care in New Jersey.
"This attendee had no interaction with the President or the Vice President and never attended the events in the main hall," the statement added.
ACU chairman Matt Schlapp however told The Washington Post that he interacted with the infected person at the event -- and while the timeline is unclear, Schlapp shook Trump's hand on the stage on the last day of the conference.
Trump, at least publicly, was putting up a brave front. "I'm not concerned at all," he said when asked about the coronavirus getting closer to the White House.
Trump added that his re-election campaign rallies would continue even as the new coronavirus spreads.
COVID-19 is spread via small droplets from the nose and mouth of an infected person, and is thought to be able to survive on surfaces for a few hours up to several days, the World Health Organization says
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Telangana CM urges Amit Shah to increase sanctioned strength of IPS officers in state
Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday night and urged him to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state in view of its growing administrative and security needs.
The two leaders also discussed the recent surrender of several senior Maoist leaders before the Telangana Police and other issues.
"During the meeting, the two leaders discussed the issue of Maoist surrenders and their rehabilitation. The chief minister informed Shah that significant improvements in policing have taken place in Telangana over the past two years," an official release here said.
Highlighting that 591 Maoists have laid down their arms and joined the mainstream of society during this period, the chief minister said the state government was providing them compensation and rehabilitation assistance as per the rules.
He requested the Union home minister to extend financial support from the central government for development works in the backward regions of the state.
Reddy also urged Shah to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state from 83 to 105 in line with the state's growing administrative and security needs, the statement said.
The first cadre review after the formation of Telangana was conducted in 2016, while the next review, due in 2021, was delayed and finally carried out in 2025. Even then, only seven additional IPS officers were allocated to the state, the chief minister informed Shah and requested that the third cadre review be conducted in 2026 as per the schedule.
Reddy explained that Telangana, like the rest of the country, is facing several modern challenges, including cybercrime, drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and other emerging security threats.
He highlighted the reorganisation of the Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri Police Commissionerates, the proposed formation of the Future City Commissionerate and the rapidly growing population in Hyderabad to underline the increasing administrative requirements of the state.
