Daily News Dose: Rabies confirmed in dog that bit vet in Kerala | Sept 20, 2022

Hello, this is your daily dose of news from Onmanorama. I'm your host, Vishnu, and these are the major news stories of the day:

1. Three accused have been sent to a seven-day police remand over the Chandigarh varsity scandal

2. Kerala High Court upholds special court order cancelling bail of 11 in Madhu lynching case

3. Rabies infection confirmed in dog that bit veterinary doctor in Kerala

4. KSRTC employees assault man amid fracas over daughter's concession card

5. Kerala Police bans drone flying in 2 km radius of strategic locations

Let's get into the details....

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1. A court on Monday sent the three accused arrested over the sensational Chandigarh University video case to police remand for a week.

Police produced the three accused in a court in Punjab's Mohali and sought their custody for 10 days.

Protests rocked the university campus in Punjab's Mohali since Saturday night over allegations levelled by students that a hosteller had recorded several objectionable videos of women students in the common washroom.

Some students even claimed that the videos were leaked. The university authorities, however, dismissed these allegations as "false and baseless".

Speaking to reporters outside the court, Sandeep Sharma, the counsel for the accused, said there were two videos, one, of the woman accused, and the other of some other girl.

When asked about allegations against the woman student that she made objectionable videos of some students, Sharma said it is a matter of investigation.

Meanwhile, a police official said the devices of all three accused will be sent for forensic examination.

Police had arrested the woman student who was accused of making the videos, but had said on Sunday that she had shared a video of only herself with her 23-year-old "boyfriend", who was arrested from Himachal Pradesh on Sunday.

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2. The Kerala High Court on Monday upheld a special court order cancelling bail of 11 accused of killing a tribal man in Palakkad district in 2018, observing that they violated the bail conditions.

Madhu from Attappady was killed after he was caught, tied and thrashed by a group of local people alleging theft on February 22, 2018.

Justice Kauser Edappagath, in his order, said the explanation offered by accused number 2 to 7, 9, 10, 12, 15 and 16 was vague in nature and not convincing. He said there was nothing on record to substantiate the same and overwhelming evidence that shows they contacted the witnesses over phone on several occasions violating the bail conditions, thereby misusing the privilege of bail granted to them.

Last month, the special court for trial of offences under the SC/ST Act in Mannarkkad had ordered the cancellation of the bail of 12 accused, accepting the prosecution's argument that under their influence, several witnesses had turned hostile during the ongoing trial.

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3. A pet dog, which had bitten a veterinary doctor at the Idukki district veterinary hospital during vaccination, has been diagnosed with rabies infection. The dog, which was under observation, died on Sunday.

Veterinary surgeon Dr Jaison George was bitten by the dog. The dog's owner Eugiene, a Thodupuzha native, and his wife was also bitten. All three have taken two doses of the antirabies vaccine.

Meanwhile, nearly 800 individuals have stepped forward to volunteer for catching strays for anti-rabies vaccination.

Kudumbashree, the poverty eradication and women's empowerment agency, has handed over the list of 720 volunteers to the departments of Local Self-Governance and Animal Husbandry, in two stages. These volunteers are in addition to the 78 dog catchers already identified by the Animal Husbandry department.

As per the current plan, the aggressive and violent dogs among the ones caught for vaccination would be accommodated in temporary dog shelters. These facilities have not yet been readied in many places owing to public protests. 

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4. A shocking incident on the high-handedness of Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) staff was reported from the Kattakada depot of the public transporter on Tuesday. A couple of employees rounded up and assaulted a man in Thiruvananthapuram for demanding fare concession card for his daughter.

Preman, a Kattakada native, was attacked in front of his daughter who is a second-year degree student.

On Tuesday morning, Preman, his daughter and her friend arrived at the KSRTC depot. A quarrel ensued soon after a KSRTC employee insisted on a course certificate for issuing the concession card, while Preman and his daughter replied they had handed over the same earlier. 

A frustrated Preman asked why they were making life miserable for the public. He even remarked that KSRTC was in the 'current state' due to such attitude.

Provoked by the remark, the KSRTC employee and a security personnel dragged him into the adjoining room and assaulted him.

Preman has been admitted to the Government Hospital at Kattakada. He is an employee of a local panchayat.  

The KSRTC issues monthly passes at concessional rates to passengers, including students, who travel between two destinations on a regular basis.

Responding to the incident, Transport Minister Antony Raju said that he has sought a report on the matter.

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5. The Kerala Police has banned the flying of drones within 2 kilometres of Special Security Zones and administrative centres in the State.

Earlier, the limit was only up to 500 metres around the Special Security Zones. 

There are 82 Special Security Zones and administrative centres in Kerala. As there are several Special Security Zones in the state capital most areas in Thiruvananthapuram City would fall under the no-fly areas for drones, with the latest revision. 

A 3-km area around all airports is also a no-fly zone for drones. 

The ‘no-fly zone’ of drones has been revised by the State Government considering the guidelines of the Union Home Department.

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That brings us to the end of this episode. Be sure to come back tomorrow. As always, thanks for listening to Daily News Dose.