Karnataka minister bats for extending covid lockdown beyond May 24

News Network

May 14, 2021

Bengaluru, May 14: As Karnataka continues to battle the second wave of Covid-19, Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Friday batted for the extension of the statewide lockdown, aimed at controlling the spread of the virus.

He said, the government headed by Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa will take a final call, as the current lockdown nears its end.

The state is currently under complete lockdown till May 24.

"As a citizen of Bengaluru my personal opinion is that it is good to continue the lockdown for a few more days. (Number of cases in the city) has come to 15,000 from 22,000 per day, it is about 7,000 cases less now, it is because of semi-lockdown and complete lockdown," Ashoka, who is also the Vice-Chairman of Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority said.

Speaking to reporters here, he pointed to long lockdowns implemented in states like Maharashtra and Delhi among others which witnessed the second wave ahead of Karnataka, and said they are a model for us as the number of cases have been coming down.

"Three days ahead of the current lockdown coming to an end, Chief Minister will call a meeting where we will share our opinion, looking at the figures that day in the state and whether the number of cases have come down because of lockdown, we will take a decision. The CM will take a decision," Ashoka said, adding he will be sharing his opinion at the meeting.

Amid the rising Covid-19 cases in the state, the Karnataka government that had initially announced 14 days closedown from April 27, it subsequently imposed a complete lockdown from May 10 to May 24, amid continued spike in cases.

Stating that no one expected a four-fold increase in the number of cases, Ashoka said, experts had said the second wave will be less compared to first wave, there were media reports too and we too had believed it.

"It is a lesson for us...the government is addressing the difficult situation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and our government are facing the situation with courage and will stand by the people," he said, as he hit out at the opposition for changing their stands on the lockdown.

Speaking to reporters in Bagalkote, Deputy Chief Minister Govind Karjol too said that the Chief Minister will take a final decision on continuing the lockdown.

"The Chief Minister will take a decision after consulting medical experts and doctors in this regard...they will examine the ICMR advice...no decision has been taken yet," he said.

Dr.Balram Bhargava, head of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has said that lockdown restrictions should remain in place for another six to eight weeks, in all districts where the rate of infection is above 10 per cent of those tested, to control the spread.

According to reports, 29 out of 31 districts in Karnataka have Covid positivity rate of over 10 per cent.

While the overall positivity rate in the state as on Thursday stood at 27.64 per cent, case fatality rate (CFR) was at 0.97 per cent.

Karnataka on Thursday reported 35,297 new cases of Covid-19, and 344 related fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 20,88,488 and the death toll to 20,712.

Total number of active cases stood at 5,93,078.

Out of the 35,297 fresh cases reported, 15,191 were from Bengaluru Urban alone.

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Los Angeles wildfire damages ‘greater’ than nuclear attack: Donald Trump

News Network

January 14,2025

Incoming American President-elect Donald Trump says the raging wildfires in Los Angeles have caused more destruction than a nuclear impact, warning that the real number of fatalities in the affected areas is likely to far surpass the current death toll.

In an interview with American cable news Newsmax on Monday, he solemnly forecast a sharp rise in the death toll from the devastating Los Angeles wildfires as local authorities deploy cadaver-sniffing dogs to comb through the rubble.

“I believe it’s greater damage than if they got hit by a nuclear weapon. I’ve never seen anything like it. Vast miles and miles of houses just burned to a crisp. There’s nothing standing,” Trump told the outlet.

The colossal wildfires, which started last week, were fueled by hurricane-force winds carrying dry desert air. Since then, at least 24 people have lost their lives, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.

However, Trump emphasized that the two dozen confirmed deaths are likely to be overshadowed by the actual toll.

“They’re going to find many bodies, you know. Only the dogs will find them, right? You know, German Shepherds will. They can pick out the ashes immediately. It’s amazing. But we’re gonna find many bodies and many more, many more dead,” the incoming president added, as he was blown away by images of the sheer level of destruction caused by the devouring fires.

The wildfires have already burned over 40,000 acres and obliterated more than 12,000 structures, wiping out entire neighborhoods.

“We’re gonna do things with Los Angeles. You know, I’m already putting my developer cap on because it looks literally– I just saw some very guarded pictures of it. And it’s far worse than you even see on television, if that’s believable,” Trump further said.

As expected, the incoming president already blamed the Democrat leadership for the wildfires, particularly slamming California Governor Gavin Newsom for mismanagement of the “apocalyptic” wildfires.

“Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way,” Trump said on January 8.

As of Monday, over 92,000 people in Los Angeles County were under evacuation orders, a decrease from the previous peak of more than 150,000, while an additional 89,000 were facing evacuation warnings.

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