Latest news with #inter-State
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
34 malaria cases recorded in Ernakulam over past two months
Ernakulam has reported over 30 confirmed cases of malaria since April 1, 2025. The total number of confirmed cases as on June 13 was 34. Of these, 21 cases were reported between May 1 and June 13. In April, as many as 13 confirmed cases were reported from various parts of the district, according to official data available with the Department of Health. A majority of them were cases of indigenous malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax, considered less dangerous than the Plasmodium falciparum species. Most cases were imported (malaria introduced into the State through inter-State travel) or introduced from other States, according to the district health authorities. The areas that reported confirmed cases between April 1 and June 13 included Alangad, Keezhmad, Munambam, Parakadavu, Mazhuvannoor, Edathala, Vazhakulam, Manjapra, Kalamassery, Vengoor, Ezhikkara, Kalamassery, Thripunitura, Kaloorkad, Kadavanthra, Koonamavu, Kothamangalam, Maradi, Pandappilli, Vennala, Cheurvattoor, and Puthrika. Stating that Kerala is a low-prevalence area for malaria, Dr. Rajeev Jayadevan, convener, Research Cell of the Indian Medical Association, Kerala, pointed out that malaria was being reported in the State primarily due to imported disease. 'For instance, migrant workers from other parts of India, where malaria is endemic, come to Kerala in search of work. In addition, international travellers from Africa also bring cases of malaria. As it is not a common cause of fever in the region, the diagnosis can be missed if healthcare professionals are not specifically looking for it,' he said. He said malaria must be suspected if the patient profile fits that of malaria, for instance, with travel history and clinical features such as fever, anaemia and jaundice. 'Testing will identify new pockets and help limit the spread. As mosquitoes spread the disease, vector control measures need to be carried out,' he said. Dr. Ashadevi, District Medical Officer, said the cases had been mostly reported from areas that had significant presence of inter-State workers. 'We have increased the number of screening camps in such areas as part of the preventive measures initiated. Most of those diagnosed with the disease were asymptomatic,' she said.
The Hindu
11-06-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Karnataka Chief Secretary writes to her Andhra Pradesh counterpart requesting to allow Totapuri mangoes from State
Chief Secretary of Karnataka Shalini Rajneesh has written to her counterpart in Andhra Pradesh requesting him to revoke the ban on entry of Totapuri mango from other States into that State. With Kolar, the major mango growing district in Karnataka, sharing the border with Andhra Pradesh, mango farmers there are heavily reliant on the processing units in Chittoor. The Andhra Pradesh government decided to impose this ban to support the Totapuri growers of the State as the production has been more than the capacity of the processing units. It has also declared a support price of ₹4 for a kg of totapuri mango. Talking to The Hindu, Ms. Rajneesh said, 'I wrote the letter following the protest of farmers in Kolar and the report of the Deputy Commissioner.' In her letter to K. Vijayanand, Chief Secretary, Andhra Pradesh, she said, 'This abrupt and unilateral restriction has caused significant distress to mango farmers in Karnataka, particularly those in the border districts who cultivate large volumes of Totapuri mangoes and rely heavily on the Chittoor-based processing units for marketing their produce. Disruption of this long-established inter-State trade linkage poses immediate threats to their livelihoods and may result in substantial post-harvest losses.' She added, 'Beyond the economic hardship to farmers, such a move undermines the spirit of cooperative federalism and risks triggering retaliatory sentiments. There is already apprehension that affected stakeholders in Karnataka may obstruct vegetable inflows from Andhra Pradesh, escalating into unnecessary inter-State tensions, something we must all strive to avoid.' However, mango farmers from Kolar district said that with the highly reduced quality and quantity of the mango yield this year, taking it to the processing centres does not make much difference. 'We are selling Totapuri at ₹4 a kg (₹4,000 a tonne) while we incur a cost of ₹10-₹12 a kg to grow it. Even if we are allowed to take it to Andhra Pradesh, we will not get any better price,' said Neelaturu Chinnappa Reddy, president of the Kolar District Mango Growers' Association. Farmers of Kolar, especially Srinivasapur taluk, have been demanding a mango processing unit there for many years. 'It has been our longstanding demand, as the lack of a unit here has made us overly reliant on those in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Government after government has failed to set it up,' Mr. Reddy said. Farmers in Srinivasapur observed a taluk-level bandh on Wednesday, demanding a support price for mangoes. Due to weather vagaries and diseases, the mango yield has dropped to less than 30% this year, according to farmers.
The Hindu
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Wrong call: On Assam and arming civilians
The decision by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Assam government to issue arms licences to 'eligible' indigenous communities in remote and vulnerable areas in the State is fraught with danger. The State government seems to suggest that indigenous communities living in the border areas abutting Bangladesh are vulnerable and that armed licences would be a deterrent and improve their personal safety and confidence. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has also insisted that these grants would not be for people near inter-State borders in Assam. But these caveats still do not take away from the fact that arming specific civilian groups is liable to be rampantly misused for acts such as vigilantism and inter-community rivalry, as the lines between law enforcement — which carries legal authority and has a monopoly over armed instruments — and private citizens are blurred. In a State that has been beset with insurgent violence and where the threat from groups such as the ULFA (Independent) remains, introducing more arms into civilian hands risks propagating further violence and arms proliferation rather than ensuring enhanced security. Instead of arming civilians, ostensibly for self-defence — a move akin to abdicating its core responsibility — the State government has the clear alternative of enhancing its own law enforcement and security presence in these 'vulnerable areas'. It is well understood that in modern states, the monopoly over instruments of violence will remain with the government and its law enforcement agencies. In India, arms licences are issued in a restricted manner as a delegated and a limited right to self-preservation to select individuals through a stringent licensing process under the Arms Act, 1959 and the Arms Rules, 2016. These rules under the law preclude the provision of such licences to larger, identified groups — where identification itself could be fraught with the risk of conflicts — as they not only present administrative challenges but also make it difficult for the government to license, monitor and recover firearms as the law requires it to. Arming civilian groups, even with an intention to do so with some stringent implementation, runs the risks of having these weapons entering grey markets and falling into the wrong hands, besides designating those groups with an authority that could backfire on the state. This was evident when security forces in Chhattisgarh arming civilian groups for protection against the Maoist threat — in the Salwa Judum campaign in the late 2000s — led to severe human rights violations and lawlessness, before the Supreme Court of India intervened to deem the policy to be illegal. Considering these problems, Assam must reverse its decision.
The Hindu
19-05-2025
- The Hindu
Four gold chains worth ₹17 lakh recovered from chain snatchers
The city police have recovered four gold chains that were snatched from victims at the KSRTC bus stands in Mysuru. After a chain-snatching incident was reported from the suburban bus stand in Mysuru on May 17, a case was registered at the Lashkar police station, and an investigation into the matter was launched. On the same day, the police personnel apprehended three persons, including two inter-State robbers, and recovered from them four gold chains, weighing about 170 grams at an estimated value of around ₹17 lakh. With the arrest of the accused and recovery of the gold chains, the city police have solved four cases of chain snatching, including three reported from the suburban bus stand in the Lashkar police station limits and one from the city bus stand in the Devaraja police station limits.
The Hindu
12-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
13% increase in students from outside State in Kerala schools
The number of students from other States enrolled in government and aided schools across Kerala from Classes I to X has increased by over 13% from 2023-24 to 2024-25. As per data from the Directorate of General Education, the total number of inter-State migrants in government, aided, and unaided schools in the State in 2023-24 was 21,299. This rose to 24,525 in 2024-25, up by 15.14%. The total number of non-Keralite students in government and aided schools was 20,911 (8,490 in government and 12,421 in aided) in 2023-24. This went up to 23,637 (10,018 in government and 13,619 in aided schools) in 2024-25. In government schools alone, the increase was 18%. In aided schools, it was slightly less at 9.65%. The number of students in unaided schools went up from 388 to 888 during this period, an increase of a whopping 128.86%. Composition of students Other than neighbouring Tamil Nadu, students from Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh constituted a chunk of the inter-State migrants studying in schools in the State. In 2023-24, they totalled 11,394 students, with Assamese students having the largest presence (3,161), followed by West Bengal (3,032), Bihar (2,631) and Uttar Pradesh (2,570). In 2024-25, the number of students from these States went up to 13,751. Assamese students again were the most in number – 3.882, followed by West Bengal with 3,758, Bihar with 3,380, and Uttar Pradesh with 2,731. The highest increase was in the number of students from Bihar – 28.4%. The number of students from Assam and West Bengal rose by 22.8% and 24%. respectively. The biggest segment among inter-State students was that of children hailing from Tamil Nadu, though their numbers remained unchanged. Students from Karnataka, Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kashmir, and Manipur also studied in the State. Nepal Nepal was home for most students hailing from other countries. In 2023-24, the number of students from other countries was 340, of which Nepalese students accounted for 333. Of the 336 students of various nationalities studying in schools in the State in 2024-25, students from Nepal totalled 332. Students from Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and the Maldives accounted for other foreign students. In 2023-24, students from Russia, the UAE, and Kuwait too studied here.
