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Amid rising cases of #Covid-19, the Ganjam district administration has ordered more curbs by banning feasts at marriage ceremonies.

Amid rising cases of COVID-19 in the capital city, a private coaching centre at Jaydev Vihar in Bhubaneswar was sealed for allegedly violating covid-19 guidelines on Monday.

A Plus-II commerce student of BJB Higher Secondary School has tested positive for COVID19. The infection was confirmed by school authorities today. As per the school authorities, students who came in close contact with the infected student have been advised to remain under home isolation for a week.

Shocking allegations have been levelled against a top police official by the wife of a Sepoy engaged in Odisha Police.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday paid tributes to the 22 security personnel who were killed by Naxals in an ambush in Chhattisgarh.

LG smartphones will no longer be available in the market! Once the world’s third-largest handset maker, LG has pulled out of the smartphone race! South Korea's LG Electronics officially confirmed on Monday that it is exiting Smartphone business due to mounting losses.

Actor-turned-politician Anubhav Mohanty and his wife actress Varsha Priyadarshini appeared before the Family Court in Cuttack for a hearing on Monday. The couple has been embroiled in a marital dispute case and appeared before the court as per earlier order. Both Varsha and Anubhav deposed before the court, even though no hearing of the case was conducted.

Personal data of nearly 53.3 Crore Facebook users, including 61 Lakh Indians, remerged after a hacker posted the stolen information online. Sources said that the leaked data includes Facebook ID numbers, profile names, email addresses, location information, gender details, job data, and other details.

In another big surge, Odisha recorded more than 500 cases for the second consecutive day with the detection of a whooping 588 positive cases of novel-coronavirus in the past 24 hours. Of the new positive cases, 342 were in quarantine while rest 246 are local contacts. Khordha district has yet again topped the single-day tally in the State. As per sources, Khordha recorded 105 new positive cases during the period, followed by Sundargarh with 84 cases and Kalahandi with 64 positive cases. This was followed by Jharsuguda with 31 Covid cases, Cuttack 30, Nuapada 29, Sambalpur 28, Ganjam 27, Puri 24, Bargarh 21, Jajpur 15, Balasore 13, Sonepur and Bolangir with 11 cases each. Mayurbhanj, Bhadrak and Koraput recorded 9 cases each, followed by Nabarangpur with 8 cases, Nayagarh 7, Dhenkanal and Rayagada with 6 cases each, Angul 5, Deogarh 4, Kandhamal and Jagatsinghpur with 3 cases each, and Keonjhar 2 cases. 1 positive case was detected in Gajapati district. The active cases in the state has surged to 3731 while the total number of Covid recoveries in Odisha now stand at 338150. On Monday (April 5), the state had breached the 500 positive cases mark in a day after almost four months.

In a bid to curb the rising cases of Covid-19 in Maharashtra, the state government has announced stricter measures to fight the virus. Apart from imposing daily night curfew, the Maharashtra government also announced a weekend lockdown in the state which will remain in force from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday every week.

In order to battle the possible second wave of coronavirus in the state, Odisha government has deployed 36 doctors for effective management and functioning of COVID-related works in four districts. As per a notification issued by the Health department on Monday (April 5), 36 post PG doctors have been appointed for places that have recently witnessed a rise in the Covid infections. The districts include Kalahandi, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur and Nuapada. 10 doctors each have been posted in Kalahandi and Nuapada districts and eight doctors each have been assigned responsibility of Malkangiri and Nabarangpur. All the doctors from SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack and MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur will work under the Chief District Medical and Public Health Officers in the four districts. The state health department has also deployed 25 AYUSH doctors to work under the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) to ensure smooth operations of Covid-19 related works. The move has been taken due to a surge in the number of Covid positive cases in the BMC jurisdiction in the last few days. The doctors have been asked to report in person to the BMC Commissioner by April 6. On Monday, Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) of Odisha Health department, Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra, wrote to the Secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, seeking adequate supply of Covishield vaccine doses to Odisha. The official said that Odisha has been assured only 3.5 lakh doses of Covisheild by 6th April (2 PM), which will not be sufficient for even two days. Citing that Odisha is vaccinating over 2 lakh people every day, the state government has requested Union Health Ministry for supply of at least 15 lakh doses of Covishield to Odisha immediately.

A major fire broke out near the iconic Ram Mandir in Bhubaneswar on Monday evening. A flower shop on the premises of temple has been completely gutted in the fire. As per reports, the fire broke out at around 4 pm, and two fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the flames. According to an eyewitness, the fire services personnel reached one and half hour late to the spot where the mishap occurred. It was further alleged that one of the fire tenders ran out of water during the crucial fire fighting operations and the reinforcement reached the spot very late. The exact reason of the blaze is yet to be ascertained.    

In view of the rising mercury levels in Odisha, the state government has revised the timings of the ongoing Covid vaccination sessions. On Monday (April 5), a notification issued by the state health department stated that the Covid-19 vaccination sessions will be conducted at all session sites from 8 AM to 12 PM and then from 3 PM to 6 PM. In the letter to the Collectors and Municipal Corporation Commissioners, Additional Chief Secretary of Health Department PK Mohapatra advised that all arrangements like waiting space, observation room, vaccination room and drinking water facility should be made available at these timings at all the centres. Additionally, the authorities were asked to ensure Covid appropriate behaviour like use of mask, hand washing and social distancing at all the session sites. Through the letter, the health department official emphasised on awareness generation among the people to achieve the daily vaccination target of 2 lakh set by the government in addition to mandatorily submitting the district daily report to the state by 6.30 PM.

As many as 20 persons sustained injuries after a pickup van in which they were travelling overturned near Bankeswari ghati in Ganjam district on Tuesday (April 6). Sources said that a family was travelling in the van to the famous Maa NijaBankeswari temple to conduct certain rituals. On the way, the vehicle suddenly overturned and 20 people were injured. As per reports, two persons have suffered critical injuries. Soon after the incident, the injured persons were rushed for treatment to the hospital in 108 ambulance.

A giant King Cobra was rescued from Malkangiri district in Odisha. The snake was rescued from MV-78 village under Kalimela block of the district. The King Cobra is said to be around 12 feet long. The Forest department officials rescued the snake and it has reportedly been released into the forest. The snake somehow entered a canal on the roadside in MV-78 village. With temperature in Malkangiri crossing 40 degrees Celsius, it is expected that the snake entered the canal in a bid to find relief from the heat.