Page 50 - Karnataka

Uttar Pradesh govt to tap into CSR funds for development projects

UP's Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra said the state will organise a 'UP CSR Summit' to script a new chapter in the process of collaborative socioeconomic development

Bommai criticises Karnataka state budget, warns of economic downturn

He stressed the need for resource mobilisation without compromising capital expenditure

K'taka HC grants relief to Byju's; calls resolutions passed in EGM invalid

The edtech firm said this development marks a significant victory for edtech firm, with court recognizing urgent need to protect the company's interests and uphold the principles established by law

Karnataka HC refuses to stay Byju's EGM called by investors on February 23

Karnataka High Court on Wednesday refused to stay an emergency shareholder meeting called by select investors of Think and Learn Pvt Ltd -- the owner of BYJU'S -- to oust the company's CEO Byju Raveendran and his family from the leadership in the edtech firm. BYJU'S had approached the Karnataka High Court seeking a stay on the EGM but the court only gave an interim relief that any resolution passed at the EGM on Friday cannot be implemented before the next court hearing. "It is further submitted that the conditions for convening the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) are not complied and no notice is issued as contemplated under Section 100 (3) of the Companies Act 2013," the court order said. It further passed an interim order that "the decision, if any taken by the shareholders of the petitioner company in the EGM scheduled on February 23, 2024, shall not be given effect to, till the next date of hearing," the order said.

K'taka Assembly passes bill slashing penalty on property tax in Bengaluru

The Karnataka Assembly has passed a bill to slash the penalty on property tax in Bengaluru city limits by 50 per cent. The bill - Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Amendment Bill 2024 - was tabled in the Assembly by Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who holds the Bengaluru Development portfolio and was passed on Tuesday. "With the passing of this Amendment Bill, the penalty amount is halved, saving Bengalureans a whopping Rs 2,700 crore. The BBMP will be able to collect penalties worth Rs 1,000 crore," a statement issued by Shivakumar's office said. This important amendment will benefit around 13 to 15 lakh people in Bengaluru city including 5.51 lakh taxpayers, five to seven lakh people outside the property tax bracket and three lakh partial property taxpayers, it added. Former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said the BJP would oppose this bill as it would lead to large-scale corruption. The Amendment Bill has a provision to give a special rebate to the poor. Governme

'Tax rich, spend on poor to uplift them' is our economics: Karnataka CM

Strongly defending his government's guarantee schemes, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said there was nothing called "Siddanomics" and he and his government believed in "good economics", which means taxing the rich in accordance with law and spending the money on the poor for their uplift. He also asserted that his government is working towards protecting the Constitution and making Karnataka "Sarva Janangada Shantiya Tota" (the peaceful garden of all communities) and alleged that the BJP believes in "Manuwad" and not the Constitution. The CM was replying to the motion of thanks to the Governor's address to the joint sitting of Karnataka Legislature, in the Legislative Assembly. The motion was later passed by the Lower House, even as opposition BJP and JD(S) staged a walkout, alleging that the Chief Minister was making a political speech ahead of Lok Sabha polls, instead of replying to issues raised, while no developmental work has taken place in nine months since .

Protest march case: SC stays proceedings against Karnataka CM, others

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed proceedings against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others in connection with a protest march held in the state in 2022. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and P K Mishra issued notice to the Karnataka government and the complainant in the case. The top court also stayed the high court order, which had imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on him as well as Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, state ministers M B Patil and Ramalinga Reddy, and directed him to appear before a special court on March 6. The case was registered against the Congress leaders after they took out a march to lay siege to the then chief minister Basavaraj Bommai's residence in Bengaluru, demanding the resignation of K S Eshwarappa, who was then the rural development and panchayat raj minister in the southern state. The agitation was staged after a contractor, Santosh Patil, died by suicide accusing Eshwarappa of demanding 40 per cent .

Air India, Tata Advanced Systems to invest Rs 2,300 crore in Karnataka

Out of the total investment, Air India will invest Rs 1,300 crore to conduct maintenance, repairs, and overhaul of planes at the Bengaluru airport

K'taka Dy CM calls for regaining banking legacy which has disappeared

He further urged Karnataka Bank to think about how to improve the region and to give a report to the government on what can be done regarding this, you have our full support

Congress will win atleast 20 seats in Karnataka in LS polls: Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday asserted that the Congress will win at least 20 out of 28 seats from the state in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. He also junked the BJP's claim of winning all the 28 seats. "We are preparing to win at least 20 seats this time. The BJP is making exaggerated claims that they will win all the 28 seats because they have realised that people will bless Congress this time," the Congress leader told reporters at Malavalli in Mandya district. Regarding the Congress strategy to fight against the coalition of BJP and Janata Dal (Secular), Siddaramaiah said there are no two parties in the opposition. "This time we have only one opposition. There are no two parties but only one party in the opposition. JD(S) has merged with the BJP and is not functioning like a separate party," he said. The BJP swept the 2019 Parliamentary polls in Karnataka by winning 25 seats, while an independent (Sumalatha Ambareesh from Mandya) backed by it won one seat.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah to launch 'Asha Kirana' programme on Sunday

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will launch 'Asha Kirana Eye Care at Your Doorstep' under the aegis of National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment in Haveri on February 18, an official statement on Saturday said. An initiative by the Department of Health and Family Welfare, comprehensive eye check-ups will be done for individuals across all age groups under the 'Asha Kirana' scheme. Free spectacles will be provided to the visually impaired and cataract surgeries will be done free of cost, the statement said. According to the statement, with the objective of reducing prevalence of avoidable blindness, 'Asha Kirana' has already been implemented successfully in eight districts across two phases. The first phase covered Chikkaballapur, Kalaburagi, Haveri, and Chamarajanagar, while the second phase included Chitradurga, Mandya, Raichur, and Uttara Kannada district. "These initiatives have yielded promising results, with millions of individuals benefiting from

LS polls: Cong hopeful of winning in coastal K'taka region, says Shivakumar

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D K Shivakumar on Saturday said there are chances of his party winning this time in the coastal belt in the forthcoming Parliamentary elections. Addressing reporters, Shivakumar, who is here to participate in the state-level party convention of workers ahead of the coming Lok Sabha polls, said there is potential for change in politics, and there are visible changes in the attitude of people in the coastal areas. "We are holding the state-level convention this time in Mangaluru as we perceive chances of winning from this region," Shivakumar, who is the Deputy Chief Minister of the state, said. He said that the issues of unemployment and business stagnation in coastal Karnataka will be addressed by the ruling Congress. Shivakumar said the BJP had failed to take up development works in the region though they have been representing the Dakshina Kannada constituency for a long period. Congress has plans to introduce innovative ideas

CM Siddaramaiah asserts commitment to implement Mekedatu, other schemes

Asserting his government's commitment to implement various irrigation and drinking water projects related to inter-state rivers including Mekedatu over Cauvery, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday in the state Assembly detailed clearances and approvals pending with the Central government. Presenting the 2024-25 budget in the Assembly, he listed out steps to implement various projects such as Mekedatu, Kalasa-Banduri, Upper Krishna, Upper Bhadra and Yettihanole, among others. A separate project division and two sub-divisions have already been set up to implement the ambitious Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir and drinking water project of Cauvery river valley, Siddaramaiah said, adding that a survey to identify land that will be submerged under this project and the counting process of trees have already been initiated. He also said action will be taken on priority to commence work early after obtaining remaining necessary clearances from the competent authorities. The Chief .

Centre okays 139,000 tonne of chana procurement from Karnataka under PSS

The Centre has approved procurement of 1.39 lakh tonne of Bengal gram (chana) from Karnataka in the 2023-24 rabi season under the Price Support Scheme (PSS), Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje said on Thursday. Besides, the Centre has released the third instalment of Rs 235.14 crore under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) to the Karnataka government for the 2023-24 fiscal, the minister said. Karandlaje said the Agriculture Ministry on Thursday approved the "procurement of Bengal Gram (Channa) in Karnataka under the Price Support Scheme (PSS) at MSP of Rs 5,440 per quintal for a maximum quantity of 1,39,740 tonne for Rabi 2023-24 season," an official statement said. Regarding the release of funds under the RKVY scheme to the state, the minister said the third instalment of Rs 235.14 crore will be utilised by the Karnataka government for the implementation of the eight components under the RKVY scheme. The amount approved will be utilised for the improvement of infrastructure in

IAMAI bats for dynamic pricing, opposes Karnataka govt's flat cab rates

In IAMAI's view, the notification overlooks the demarcation between city taxis used for street ride-hailing and app-based operators

Govt negotiating with Gail to employ 34 people troubled by JBF crisis

The Karnataka government is in talks with the Centre to provide jobs at Gas Authority of India Limited to 34 employees who are left in the lurch due to a financial crisis in JBF Industries Ltd, state Large and Medium Industries minister MB Patil said on Tuesday in the legislative council. He was replying to a question by Congress member Manjunath Bhandari. The minister said that talks will be held again with top officials of GAIL. The minister's reference was to 34 people who were evicted after they gave their lands to JBF Industries Ltd in Mangalore Special Economic Zone (SEZ). According to the government rules, the company should have employed 115 such people who gave up their land for the project. Later, the company employed only 81 of them in 2012. However, the company ran into a financial crisis in 2017 and was handed over to Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) as per the process held at NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal). Though GAIL paid them wages till March 2023, problem

Karnataka govt will support setting up US Consulate in Bengaluru: Kharge

Minister Kharge was speaking to delegates of the US Trade Mission to Karnataka and South India who are visiting major Tier-I and Tier-II South Indian cities from 12 to 20 February 2024

Amit Shah to discuss LS poll strategy with Karnataka BJP leaders today

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to formulate the party's strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls during his meetings with the state leadership on Sunday, Karnataka BJP chief B Y Vijayendra said. He also said the meeting is likely to discuss facing the polls together with alliance partner JD(S), with proper coordination between workers and leaders of both parties at the ground level and may also deliberate on the number of seats to be given to the regional party. Shah arrived in the "palace city" early today and is scheduled to take part in meetings with state BJP core committee members and leaders of the party's Mysuru cluster later in the day. He is also expected to visit Sutturu near here to attend Sutturu Jathra (fair) and visit Chamundeshwari temple on Chamundi hills. "The meeting will see participation of 120 leaders from Mysuru, Mandya, Hassan and Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituencies. Also there is a meeting with state BJP core committee, where discussions will be he

Foxconn invites bids to construct Rs 1,200 crore plant in Karnataka

Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn has invited bids to construct a plant in Karnataka with an outlay of Rs 1,200 crore, according to sources. The project will be executed through Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Pvt. The Karnataka government has approved an investment proposal of around Rs 22,000 crore from Foxconn. "Foxconn's recent bid for plant construction is for an iPhone factory which it is setting up in Karnataka," a source aware of the development said. On February 6, Foxconn had said in a regulatory filing that the announcement about inviting bids was on behalf of its subsidiary Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Pvt Ltd for engaging others to build the plant. The source said the Rs 1,200 crore bid is not for the company's semiconductor joint venture with HCL. Last month, Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Pvt Ltd had allocated USD 37.2 million or about Rs 308 crore for setting up a semiconductor joint venture with .

Karnataka stops sale and consumption of 'hookah' with immediate effect

The government noted that hookah in hotels, bars and cafes have made food consumption unsafe for the overall population and could adversely affect their health