
HC says COVID-19 situation in Karnataka is ‘very bad’
The Hindu
Evolve mechanism to purchase Remdesivir, says court
Describing the COVID-19 situation in the State as “very bad”, the High Court of Karnataka on Thursday directed the State government to immediately take a call on purchasing Remdesivir directly from manufacturers and distributors, and then supply to the hospitals for a fixed price in a fair and transparent manner. Till the government decides on direct purchasing of Remdesivir, a mechanism should be evolved immediately to give a real-time online information system on availability of Remdisivir with stockists and retails so that the family members of COVID-19 patients could procure it easily as and when the vial is prescribed by the hospitals. Also, the court directed the government to create a distribution system for supply of oxygen to the hospitals by coordinating with manufacturers and suppliers in addition to the war room created to monitor supply of oxygen and posting of officers in oxygen refilling centres.
In , the grape capital of India and host of the Simhastha Kumbh Mela every 12 years, environmental concerns over a plan to cut 1,800 trees for the proposed Sadhugram project in the historic Tapovan area have sharpened political fault lines ahead of local body elections. The issue has pitted both Sena factions against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which leads the ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra. While Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief, and Uddhav Thackeray, chief of the Shiv Sena (UBT), remain political rivals, their parties have found rare common ground in Tapovan, where authorities propose clearing trees across 34 acres to build Sadhugram and a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) hub, as part of a ₹300-crore infrastructure push linked to the pilgrimage.












