Jaipur, June 20 (IANS) An agreement has been reached between the Rajasthan government and the family of Dr. Rakesh Vishnoi, the resident doctor from SN Medical College, Jodhpur, who committed suicide.

RLP workers said that under pressure from Hanuman Beniwal’s protest, the government has accepted the demands of the deceased doctor’s family.Earlier in the day, Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) MP Hanuman Beniwal, along with his supporters, staged a dharna outside the mortuary of Sawai Mansingh Hospital in Jaipur.Despite heavy rainfall, protestors continued their sit-in, demanding justice in the case. There were plans to march from the mortuary to the Chief Minister’s residence, prompting police to barricade the road connecting Tonk Road to JLN Marg to prevent escalation.Before the consensus was reached, MP Beniwal strongly criticised the administration’s handling of the case. “The Jodhpur administration’s insensitivity is evident. In his final moments, Dr. Rakesh Vishnoi was pleading for help. Our key demand is the suspension and arrest of HOD Dr. Rajkumar Rathore. An impartial investigation committee must be formed and the report submitted to the government at the earliest,” he said.He said that despite members of the Jat and Vishnoi communities protesting on the streets, not a single government official or minister has visited. Dr. Rakesh Vishnoi allegedly consumed poison on June 13 and died the next day at SMS Hospital in Jaipur. His family claims he was being harassed by his Head of Department, Dr. Rajkumar Rathore, and was under severe mental distress. They allege that Rathore threatened to obstruct the completion of his thesis, a claim Rakesh had also communicated to the police before his death.A related video has been circulating on social media for the past two days.In connection with the case, Rakesh’s brother, Kishan Vishnoi, has filed an FIR against Dr. Rajkumar Rathore at the Shastri Nagar police station in Jodhpur. However, citing inaction by the authorities, the family and their supporters have been staging protests in Jaipur for the past seven days.Also, a few days ago, a confrontation broke out between Congress leaders and police outside SMS Hospital. Following the incident, the police indicated they may register cases against the protestors.Rakesh’s other brother, Subhash Vishnoi, has reiterated the family’s allegations, stating that harassment by Dr. Rajkumar pushed Rakesh to take the extreme step –IANSarc/dan

Ranchi, June 20 (IANS) Continuous monsoon rains have worsened the already precarious situation in Jharkhand’s coal mining regions, as the fear of land subsidence adds to the prevailing situation where underground fires continue unabated and evoke widespread panic due to rising gas and smoke emissions.Several areas across Dhanbad, Ranchi, Ramgarh, and Bokaro districts are witnessing intensified underground fires, with thick smoke and noxious gases emanating from fissures in the ground..Among the worst-affected locations are Jharia, Baghmara, Katras, and Sijua in Dhanbad; the Karakatta mine under the Khalari coalfield in Ranchi; Bhuchungdih village in Ramgarh’s Rajrappa coal area; and the Dhori region in Bokaro district.In the Jharia area, particularly in BCCL (Bharat Coking Coal Ltd) Area Nine and the Kanakani Colliery in Sijua, thick smoke is billowing from ground cracks. Residents are gripped by fear of land subsidence — a recurring and life-threatening hazard in these coal belts.Meanwhile, monsoon downpours have further complicated matters by flooding both opencast and underground mines across all 12 BCCL operational zones in the state.As a result, coal production has been suspended, and entry of workers into underground mines has been strictly prohibited. In many locations, heavy mining machinery has been submerged, causing substantial operational and economic losses.Although the BCCL administration had issued a high alert anticipating the risk, the mines were inundated due to ineffective drainage systems.The flooding has led to incidents of gas leaks and land sinking in residential settlements near Baghmara, Katras, and surrounding areas.Reports of structural damage are also emerging, with cracks appearing in several homes. Despite being declared unsafe years ago, many families continue to reside in these hazardous areas due to a lack of relocation or compensation options.The situation is grim in the Karakatta area of Ranchi’s Khalari coalfield, where smoke and gas are rising from more than 15 locations. Water entering the abandoned mine through ground cracks has created the smoke, making the air nearly unbreathable for nearby residents.In Rajrappa’s Bhuchungdih village, an illegal mine fire threatens to spiral out of control. The area had already witnessed a fatal accident last month, when labourer Ravindra Mahato died after falling into a cavity formed due to subsidence.Efforts by Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) and the local administration to control the fire are going on.In Bokaro, a fire broke out recently in the Dhori Khas underground mine (seams 4 and 5) under CCL’s Dhori Area. The management struggled for several days to bring the blaze under control.As the crisis deepens, residents are demanding immediate intervention, relocation, and long-term solutions to mitigate the environmental and health risks posed by coal fires, especially during the monsoon season.–IANSsnc/skp/vd

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) Monitoring fungal spores in the outdoor air can predict surges in flu and Covid-19 infections, according to a study.Researchers from Lynn University in Florida, US, discovered that airborne concentrations of fungal spores — but not pollen — were strongly linked to increases in flu and Covid-19 cases.When airborne concentrations of fungal spores rose, the scientists often saw a jump in infections within a few days.The study models were able to predict flu and Covid-19 surges with high accuracy, particularly in the fall season. However, pollen didn’t show the same connection or prediction.“The findings from our study suggest that monitoring airborne fungal spore levels could help predict short-term outbreaks (spikes) of flu and Covid-19, giving public health systems an early warning signal,” said Felix E. Rivera-Mariani, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at Lynn.“Our findings also highlight the potential role of environmental factors — not just person-to-person spread — in contributing to the incidence of respiratory viral infections. That could open new doors for targeted public health alerts, especially in areas with high outdoor airborne fungi,” Rivera-Mariani added.In the study, the team examined daily data from 2022 to 2024, in two major health regions in Puerto Rico—San Juan and Caguas.The data included the daily incidence of people diagnosed with Covid-19 and flu, and the concentrations of airborne fungal spores and pollen recorded on the same days.The scientists then implemented statistical and machine learning models to see if high levels of these environmental exposures could predict spikes in flu and Covid-19 cases within the same week or the following week (called lag-effect).“The findings may help inform environmental risk alerts, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly or those with asthma and allergic rhinitis,” Rivera-Mariani said.The study was presented at ASM Microbe 2025 in Los Angeles, the annual meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.–IANSrvt/uk

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) US researchers have found that developing personalised vaccines can play a key role in keeping aggressive tumours from recurring.The study, led by a team from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, focused on triple-negative breast cancer and melanoma, a deadly skin cancer.Currently, the long-term prognosis for human patients with these cancers is relatively poor.It’s because the diseases tend to recur after the initial treatments to remove the tumours.However, using mouse models, the team could slow down the recurrence of tumours.Quanyin Hu, a professor in the UW–Madison School of Pharmacy, said the approach could theoretically be applied to any cancer that tends to recur, such as pancreatic cancer and glioblastoma, the most common and extremely aggressive brain tumour.The personalised vaccine approach is an extension of the team’s recent discovery of pyroptotic vesicles — tiny sacs filled with the remnants of cancer cells when they undergo programmed cell death.Crucially, the remnants in these microscopic sacs include antigens specific to the tumour, along with other molecular bits that can help direct immune cells to find and suppress cancer cells that might remain after a tumour is surgically removed.In the new study, published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, the team engineered these sacs to carry an immune-stimulating drug.They then embedded these engineered vesicles into a hydrogel that can be implanted into the space left behind after surgical removal of a tumour.Using a melanoma mouse model and two different types of mouse models for triple negative breast cancers, including one with a human-derived tumour, the researchers compared their new approach with other cancer vaccine methods being studied.The mice that received the hydrogel laden with their engineered sacs survived significantly longer than others.”Compared to the other approaches, ours shows a much stronger immune response,” Hu said.Another advantage of this approach, the researchers said, is the localised nature of the treatment.According to Hu, applying the engineered vesicles directly to the site of the removed tumour greatly reduces the risk of systemic side effects, unlike currently available treatments.–IANSrvt/vd

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) A hoax snake sighting in a Delhi Metro coach led to pandemonium as panic-struck passengers in the ladies-only coach climbed onto seats and looked to escape to other coaches for safety. An inspection of the coach later led to the recovery of a baby lizard, an official said on Friday.A video of the chaotic developments in the coach of a Blue Line train went viral on social media on Thursday, with some passengers seen shrieking in fright in the video before evacuation.The video also shows one of the passengers pressing the emergency stop button, bringing the train to a halt for everyone to deboard at the Akshardham Metro station.The chaos lasted a few minutes after one of the commuters raised an alarm, claiming that she had spotted a ‘snake’s tail’, said an official.Though none of the passengers could see the ‘reptile’, many women travellers were frightened and took evasive measures – like climbing the steel seats – to avoid contact with the ‘snake’.Head of Delhi Metro’s communications department, Anuj Dayal, said, “A video is in wide circulation, where although the snake is not visible in the video, it is being purportedly claimed that a ‘snake’ was spotted in a ladies-only coach. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) took immediate action upon receiving the alert from the passengers in the coach on Thursday evening.”“The train was vacated at the Akshardham Metro station and sent to the depot for thorough inspection. Despite a meticulous check of the train footage and coach at the depot by the concerned team, no snake was found. However, a baby lizard was spotted during the inspection,” he said.He also assured passengers about DMRC’s commitment to passenger safety, saying that even in this case swift action was taken to address the concerns of the travellers.“We urge passengers to remain vigilant and report any such concerns to our staff for prompt action,” he said.–IANSrch/rad

New Delhi, June 20 (IANS) Yoga is a journey towards inner peace and harmony than just physical exercise, said Saima Wazed, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia on Friday, ahead of the International Day of Yoga (IDY).The International Day of Yoga is marked annually on June 21. The theme this year is “Yoga for One Earth, One Health”.”Yoga is more than just physical exercise. It is a journey towards inner peace and harmony, and teaches us to listen to our bodies and to live mindfully,” Wazed said.The WHO Regional Director stated that practicing yoga can help people become more aware of the surroundings, and nature.”In a world facing environmental challenges, yoga offers a path to sustainability by encouraging us to live simply, consume mindfully, and respect the natural world,” Wazed noted.”In embracing yoga, we can reduce our ecological footprint and contribute to a healthier planet,” she added.Yoga encourages to protect clean air, pure water, and fertile soil — essential for our well-being. These vital resources ensure a thriving planet for future generations.She cited several studies which showed that 77 per cent of people report feeling physically stronger after practicing yoga regularly.More than 80 per cent of patients with chronic inflammation experienced a nearly 50 per cent reduction in inflammation after just six weeks of daily yoga.Further, studies have also proved how yoga can help mental health.A study by Harvard Medical School found that 60 per cent of participants with depression experienced a significant reduction in symptoms after practicing yoga twice a week for eight weeks.”Today, on International Day of Yoga, let us remember that every breath is a gift from nature, and every moment of mindfulness is a step towards a healthier future. Let us create a world of health and harmony, of mind, body and planet,” Wazed added.–IANSrvt/na

Bengaluru, June 20 (IANS) Union Home Minister Amit Shah has stated that the major initiatives…

Dhaka, June 20 (IANS) Bangladesh is facing a vaccine crisis to fight against the newly detected sub-variants of the Omicron strain of COVID-19. The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) of the country stressed that only 3.2 million doses of older vaccines are available, which are due to expire in a few months, local media reported.According to a report by Bangladeshi media outlet UNB, COVID-19 infection rates have surged nationwide over the past month. According to the data from the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) in Dhaka, 134 cases tested positive out of 1,409 samples in May, a sharp rise in the infection rate at 9.51 per cent, the highest recorded in Bangladesh from January to May 2023.“In total, there are around 3.2 million doses of vaccines. No new vaccines for the sub-variants have arrived so far. However, the process of procurement is ongoing. A vaccine committee will be formed soon to make a prompt decision,” said Halimur Rashid, Line Director of the Communicable Disease Control (CDC) unit at the DGHS.Meanwhile, amid the rise in Covid cases reportedly there is a lack of interest among the public to get vaccinated. “There are various rumours about vaccines that have no scientific basis,” said Rashid.According to the DGHS, a total of 28 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Bangladesh till Thursday morning, as the total number of confirmed cases in the country has risen to 20,51,932.The country on June 5 recorded its first COVID-19 fatality this year when a man died from the infectious disease in the capital, Dhaka. The DGHS data revealed that over 29,500 people have died of the COVID-19 virus in Bangladesh so far since the epidemic began.Experts emphasised the need for early preparedness in tackling the spread of new sub-variants, adding that proactive action can lower the infection and mortality rates.–IANSint/scor/rs

Sydney, June 20 (IANS) A health alert for measles has been issued in the Australian city after a confirmed case traveled through the city’s international airport while infectious.The health department in the state of New South Wales (NSW) said on Friday that the confirmed case arrived in Sydney from Southeast Asia, where there are ongoing outbreaks of measles in several countries, on Monday.Anyone who was on board Vietnam Airlines flight VN773 that arrived at the Sydney International Airport on Monday or who was in the airport’s arrivals and baggage collection areas between 8:00-9:30 a.m. on the same day has been advised to monitor for symptoms of measles.Mitchell Smith, the acting director of Public Health for the South Western Sydney Local Health District, said that initial symptoms include fever, sore eyes, runny nose and a cough followed days later by a rash that spreads from the face to the rest of the body.He said that it is important for anyone who was on the flight or in those areas of the airport to monitor for symptoms for 18 days, Xinhua news agency reported.According to data from the federal government’s National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System, there have been 80 confirmed cases of measles in Australia so far in 2025 compared to 57 cases for the entirety of 2024 and 26 in 2023.According to the World Health Organization, measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus. It spreads easily when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes. It can cause severe disease, complications, and even death.Measles can affect anyone but is most common in children.Measles infects the respiratory tract and then spreads throughout the body. Symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose and a rash all over the body.Being vaccinated is the best way to prevent getting sick with measles or spreading it to other people. The vaccine is safe and helps your body fight off the virus.Before the introduction of measles vaccine in 1963 and widespread vaccination, major epidemics occurred approximately every two to three years and caused an estimated 2.6 million deaths each year.An estimated 107 500 people died from measles in 2023 – mostly children under the age of five years, despite the availability of a safe and cost-effective vaccine.–IANSint/jk/mr

Panipat, June 20 (IANS) In a vibrant prelude to International Yoga Day, thousands of schoolchildren in Haryana’s Panipat on Friday took part in a marathon aimed at spreading awareness about the importance of yoga.

The event, which served as a final rehearsal for the big day, was flagged off by nodal officer Sneh Lata at Shivaji Stadium.Sneh Lata said, “Tomorrow marks the 11th International Yoga Day, and Agriculture Minister Shyam Singh Rana will be the chief guest. Today’s marathon, led by enthusiastic students, is not just a physical activity — it is a message. These children are promoting yoga and creating awareness in society about its benefits.”District Education Officer Rakesh Boora added, “Around 4,000 students from 22 schools in Panipat will participate in tomorrow’s celebrations. Yoga is highly beneficial for health, and our students are helping to spread this message to the wider community.”Yoga, an ancient gift from India to the world, is more than just physical exercise — it’s a pathway to mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. Each year on June 21, countries around the globe come together to honour this age-old practice.This year’s theme, “Yoga for One Earth, One Health”, highlights the connection between personal well-being and planetary health. As we step into the 11th edition of International Yoga Day, India is set to witness unprecedented celebrations.The 2025 observance will feature 10 signature events, including the flagship initiative ‘Yoga Sangam’, where mass yoga demonstrations will be held at 1,00,000 locations across the country. Other key events include Yoga Bandhan, Yoga Park, Yoga Samavesh, Harit Yoga, and Yoga Mahakumbh, among others.The idea of dedicating a day to yoga was proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014 and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly the same year. Since then, June 21 has become a symbol of global unity in pursuit of holistic health. The grand event held in New Delhi on June 21, 2015, the first International Yoga Day achieved two Guinness World records: largest yoga session, with 35,985 participants, and for the most nationalities (84) in one session.–IANSjk/dpb