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Maharashtra

Maha: 2 men test ‘Positive’ and ‘Negative’ in 24 hrs, Aarogya Setu unmoved

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 In these panicky times of the pandemic, two persons from Mumbai and Thane this week got bizarre shockers on their Covid-19 infection status from a government lab, two private labs of a single company, and their status on the Centre’s Aarogya Setu portal.

Within hours after they underwent RTPCR tests, the two men were declared as both Covid-19 “Negative” and “Positive”, playing havoc with their lives, families, neighbourhood, offices and travel plans.

In a strange further development, for one of the two persons who tested negative, the Aarogya Setu team threw up its hands and said that his positive status on the app will change only after he tests negative!

On Monday, a realtor named Vijay P. Agarwal (58) from Malad, who had to step out for some meetings, routinely checked his status on the Aarogya Setu portal and was aghast to find himself mentioned as Covid positive.

“I immediately went into self-isolation, and underwent an RTPCR test from a BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) centre nearby to confirm my infection status. Yesterday (January 11), the BMC test returned negative, creating further confusion,” Agarwal said.

After facing flak for the mega-scare on all fronts, a peeved Agarwal shot off an email to Aarogya Setu authorities seeking an explanation for the misleading status against his name.

In its reply on Wednesday, the Aarogya Setu team said: “COVID-19 positive status will change automatically in the application within 14 days, from the date the user is declared Covid negative.”

“This is even more ridiculous. They are forcing me to remain positive. How can I get a negative report on an existing negative report? They should honour the BMC RTPCR test report and immediately change my status on Aarogya Setu so that I don’t face any hassles,” Agarwal said.

A Thane resident, K.G. (40), who was due to fly to the Gulf last week, had a similar harrowing experience.

He underwent the pre-flight mandatory RTPCR test at a reputed private lab and was relieved to find him as negative. Accordingly, he made preparations for his flight the next day (January 3).

“When I went to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), I was asked to do another RTPCR test. Shockingly, that report came positive and I could not board the flight,” rued K.G., declining to reveal his full identity, apprehending reprisals.

Ironically, both his tests, received within a gap of barely 24 hours, were conducted by the same lab at its Thane branch and at the CSMIA.

While Agarwal – who has several heart-related comorbidities – recently took the first jab of Covid-19 vaccine and is awaiting the second dose after around 45 days, K.G. was fully vaccinated a few months ago on account of his frequent foreign travels.

As far as K.G. is concerned, he cooled his heels under home isolation for a week, underwent another RT-PCR test, which again came positive on Tuesday, nixing his foreign travel plans further.

Demanding action, the duo slammed the lab authorities for the “sheer negligence” leading to such contradictory RT-PCR reports, which caused turmoil for the unsuspecting victims, with their scared families, neighbours and others shunning or boycotting them completely.

disaster

Mumbai’s Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Sudhakar Pathare, who was posted in the Port Zone, passed away in a road accident on Saturday.

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Pathare had visited Hyderabad for training. He was on his way to visit a temple with a relative when the accident occurred. Both Pathare and his relative lost their lives in the crash.

Mumbai Police have been informed about the incident.

More details are awaited.

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Maharashtra

Order to demolish the tomb of Hazrat Syed Bale Shah Baba in Mira Bhayander

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Mumbai: The state government has issued an order to demolish the four hundred year old dargah of Hazrat Syed Bale Shah Peer Rahmatullah Alaih located in Mira Bhayander. Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation has sent a letter to the collector declaring this dargah illegal and ordered action against it. As the dargah is located on forest land, communalists had started demanding the demolition of the dargah. In the House, Darranjan Daukhre had also demanded action against the dargah, after which now the state government has ordered to run a bulldozer on the dargah. An order has also been issued to remove and demolish the dargah by May.

Dargah trustee Amjad Sheikh said that this dargah is ancient and this order is illegal in itself. In this case, communal forces had launched a campaign against the dargah, after which this order was issued.

There is a dargah on the beach and citing the threat of terrorist and illegal activities and the presence of terrorists here, there was a demand to demolish the dargah. The dargah is close to the sea and in such a situation, the threat of a terrorist attack on Mumbai from the sea has been expressed, while the dargah administration has clearly denied this and said that communal organizations are running their agenda against the dargah and there is no such threat. Muslims have opposed this decision of the government and Muslims have also expressed their displeasure and anger over it.

The trustee says that this dargah is ancient and earlier the collector and the municipal corporation had given a notice, after which the illegal shed and other premises were demolished here and the dargah administration has taken this action at its own level. Now an order has been issued to demolish the dargah itself.

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Maharashtra

Haji Ali Dargah will be closed for pilgrims for a few hours on Eid due to rising sea level

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Mumbai: Due to rising sea level at Haji Ali Dargah in Mumbai, the dargah will be closed for pilgrims for a few hours on Eid. On March 31, the dargah will be closed for pilgrims from 12 noon to 3 pm. During this time, entry of pilgrims to the dargah will be restricted. The dargah will be closed on Tuesday, April 1 from 12:45 pm to 3:45 pm and on Wednesday, April 2 from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm.

Therefore, we have appealed to the pilgrims not to gather at the dargah during these hours. This information has been released by Tahir, administrative officer of Haji Ali Dargah. Pilgrims visit Haji Ali Dargah on Eid-Basi and Tiwasi, but due to the rising water level of the sea, water gets accumulated on the way to the Dargah and entry to the Dargah is prohibited and the gate of the Dargah remains closed during these days, due to which there is a lot of crowd there. Therefore, pilgrims have been requested to come to the Dargah only at the scheduled time.

The police also remains vigilant at the Dargah during the rising sea level, as there is a crowd of pilgrims here during Eid and festivals. The Haji Ali Dargah administration has said that on the occasion of Eid, lakhs of pilgrims visit the Dargah of Haji Ali (RahmatullahAlaih). These pilgrims include pilgrims from the country and abroad, so the Dargah administration has also claimed special security arrangements on Eid. Spiritual scenes are also seen at Haji Ali Dargah during Eid prayers.

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