Bengaluru: Alarmed over 53 journalists testing positive for COVID-19 in neigbouring Maharashtra, the Karnataka government on Tuesday decided to conduct a health check up camp for journalists in Bengaluru.
On the directions of Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa,the Information and Public Relation Commissioner S N Siddaramappa wrote to the Commissioner of Health and Public Welfare to conduct a medical checkup camp for the journalists.
Stating that there are about 1,000 journalists in the city, Siddaramappa asked the health commissioner to fix the date, time and place for the checkup camp.
The Chief Minister felt the need to conduct such test after the Minister for Primary and Secondary Education S Suresh Kumar wrote to him on Tuesday.
During the regular COVID-19 related briefing on Monday, a reporter had raised the issue of 53 journalists in Maharashtra testing positive for the disease, with Minister for Primary and Secondary Education S Suresh Kumar.
In Maharashtra, 53 out of the 171 scribes examined medically were found to have the viral infection.
In his letter to the Chief Minister, Kumar requested that a similar test be carried out for the journalists in Karnataka.
Yediyurappa tweeted on Tuesday, "Dear friends in media, you are toiling 24 hours a day without bothering about your life just like the doctors and police.
Our concern is that you should not overlook your health while performing your duty.
I request you to please take care of your health and undergo medical examination," the Chief Minister tweeted.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation had collected swab samples of 171 mediapersons, including electronic and print media journalists, photographers and cameramen at a special camp organised at Azad Maidan here in Mumbai on April 16 and 17 for COVID-19 testing of scribes, out of them, 53 tested positive for COVID-19.
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