Adityanath’s father dies; UP CM says can’t attend funeral
Lucknow/ New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s father Anand Bisht died at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi on Monday, officials said. The BJP leader said he will not attend the funeral as he needed to be in the state for the fight against COVID-19. Bisht, 89, was admitted to the AIIMS after his health deteriorated. His condition was critical, sources at the hospital said. He was undergoing treatment at the gastroenterology department, they said. Bisht’s last rites will take place in Haridwar in Uttarakhand on April 21, Media Advisor to the chief minister Mrityunjay Kumar said In a statement, the chief minister said, “I had the ardent wish to get a glimpse of him at the final moment. However, following a sense of duty towards the state’s 23 crore people during the COVID-19 pandemic, I could not do so.” “For the success of the lockdown and the strategy to defeat the novel coronavirus pandemic, I will be unable to attend the last rites on April 21,” Adityanath said “I am deeply saddened by the demise of my respected father. He instilled in me the values of honesty, hardwork and selfless service for public welfare in childhood itself,” he said. Even as news of his father’s demise reached Adityanath continued with a meeting with officials, whom he directed to ensure that the students of Uttar Pradesh who have returned from coaching hub Kota are quarantined at their homes. (PTI)
Man detained for bid to sell unborn baby of kin via Facebook
Aurangabad: A 30-year-old man wasdetained after he allegedly tried to sell the unborn baby of his sister-in-law, police said on Monday. The woman, who is seven months pregnant, separated from her husband sometime back. Following her separation, the accused, Shivshankar Tagade, a resident of Ranjangaon Shenpunji area here, wanted that his sister-in-law should remarry someone. But as her unborn child from her earlier marriage posed a hindrance, Tagade and the woman decided to sell the baby after birth, a police spokesperson said. They allegedly tried to fix a deal through Facebook by contacting those who wanted a child, the official said. The women and child welfare department got information about this and alerted the police. On Sunday, the cyber unit of police foiled their attempt to sell the unborn baby and detained Tagade, he said. A case was registered against the accused under provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act and further probe in the matter was underway, he added. (PTI)
265 UK tourists fly back from Goa
Panaji: Two hundred and sixty five British nationals took off for the UK in a special flight from the Goa International Airport on Monday, an Aiport Authority of India official said. The officials said that since the COVID-19 lockdown, more than 5,000 foreign tourists, including those from Russia, France, US, Canada, had been repatriated. “This was the 27th special flight flying foreign tourists out of the Goa International Airport. In all we have facilitated the exit of 5,233 passengers since March 25,” Goa Airport director Gagan Malik told reporters here. “As far as relief flights are concerned, Goa International Airport is handling maximum relief flights in India, because Goa is popular among passengers,” Malik also said. (IANS)
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Ranchi: The number of letters arriving at the post offices here for dispatch might have reduced since the imposition lockdown, but postmen in Ranchi have been keeping busy delivering medicines and other essentials to homes and hospitals, a senior official said. Some of them have also found the addressees sceptical about receiving parcels or registering their digital signature on their phones due to threat of virus transmission, he said. “In a couple of areas, our personnel had to return with the parcel as people were scared of touching the consignment,” said Sadhan Kumar Sinha, the senior superintendent of post offices in Ranchi. Sinha also said that postmen had on occasions delivered items even after midnight. “We are delivering medicines and medical equipment to Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences and MGM Hospital, Jamshedpur. Our postmen have been given sanitizers and soaps, and they exercise precautions, he added. An official release here, meanwhile, said that Additional Chief Secretary (Planning-cum-Finance Department), KK Khandelwal has directed all district deputy commissioners to seek cooperation from the Department of Posts for doorstep delivery of foodgrain, money, and other necessary items. (PTI)