Page 54 - Karnataka

760 new Covid-19 infections in India; JN.1 variant cases cross 500 mark

Covid-19 cases: Two deaths were reported in the past 24 hours. While active cases stood at 4,423, Karnataka reported the highest JN.1 variant cases at 199

K'taka CM lashes at BJP leaders on protest against arrest of Hindu activist

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday lashed out at the BJP over its protest against the arrest of a Hindu activist in Hubballi in connection with a 31-year-old case related to Ram temple agitation, saying leaders of the opposition party need to understand that assigning caste and religious labels to criminals is extremely dangerous. He recalled that even when the BJP government was in power in the state, the Lokayukta police had arrested the then Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and sent him to jail. "Is that Hubballi criminal suspect any greater Hindu or devotee of Rama than Yediyurappa? So, was the government at that time anti-Hindu? Not even the leaders of the BJP's parent organisation called the government that arrested Hindu Yediyurappa anti-Hindu, did they? Why this outcry now?", Siddaramaiah said. "The Congress government is becoming more popular day by day. Out of desperation, BJP leaders are rallying around a criminal suspect", the Chief Minister ...

In position, but not ready: Karnataka's political turmoil ahead of LS Polls

The incipient revolt against two recent appointments by a section of leaders indicated that the BJP may have to get its act together before challenging the Congress

L&T wins Rs 1,040 cr contract for part of Bengaluru suburban rail project

Larsen and Toubro was issued the Letter of Acceptance on Saturday for the design and construction of an elevated viaduct including associated works between Heelalige and Rajanukunte of Corridor-4 of the Bengaluru Suburban Rail project, officials said. The contract price is Rs 1,040.51 crore including GST and the contract period is 30 months. The physical work is expected to commence shortly, they said. In a statement, Karnataka's Rail Infrastructure Development Company (K-RIDE) said, "Larsen and Toubro has been issued the Letter of Acceptance today for the design and construction of elevated viaduct of length 8.960 km and At-Grade of length 37.920 km (excluding station buildings) including associated works between Heelalige and Rajanukunte, on EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) mode, in Corridor-4 or 'Kanaka' line of Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP)." This contract also includes construction of a double decker alignment of 1.2 km length for BSRP Corridor-1 and

Bengaluru's net office space leasing soars 15 times in Oct-Dec: Report

Bengaluru saw a 15-fold jump in net office leasing during the quarter due to many large leasing transaction from corporates as well as low base effect, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield said on Saturday that the net leasing of office space stood at 18.63 million sq ft during the October-December period across major eight cities as against 9.06 million sq ft in the year-ago period. The Bengaluru office market achieved the highest volume and also maximum surge in percentage term during the current quarter of this calendar year. The net office leasing or absorption in Bengaluru jumped to 80,50,266 sq ft during October-December from 5,18,622 sq ft in the year-ago period. "Many large deals that were under negotiation in the previous quarters, but occupiers were adopting a cautious approach and delaying, have sailed through in Q4. As a result, fresh leasing of space jumped," the consultant said, explaining the sharp jump in office demand in

Won't allow anyone to go on rampage in Karnataka: Dy CM Shivakumar

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said the government will not allow anyone to take law into their own hands in the state in the name of fighting for the Kannada language. He was reacting to the large-scale vandalism in Bengaluru by the activists of Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (Narayana Gowda faction) targeting shops and business establishments which did not have Kannada signboards, advertisements and name plates. "We are not against the pro-Kannada activists but they should not take law into their hands. We are not ready to accept damage caused to the properties in Bengaluru," Shivakumar told reporters here. "We have to save Kannada and we respect those who fight for saving Kannada but that should not mean that the government will shut it's eyes to vandalism," he added. The Deputy CM said the government directions are clear that signboards, advertisements and name plates should have 60 per cent Kannada and there is a way to implement it such as issuing notic

Ranji Trophy 2023-24: Mayank Agarwal to lead Karnataka in first two matches

Experienced opener Mayank Agarwal was on Wednesday named as Karnataka captain for the first two matches of the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. The promising young batsman Nikin Jose has been appointed as Agarwal's deputy. However, KL Rahul has not been named in the 16-man squad considering India's upcoming assignments at home against Afghanistan (three T20Is) and England (five Tests) across January and February. Agarwal had a big 2022-23 domestic season emerging as the top run-getter in the circuit with 990 runs from nine matches at average of 82.50 that contained three hundreds and six fifties. Karnataka will open their Ranji campaign against Punjab at Hubli from January 5-8 and in their second match, the former champions will face Gujarat in Ahmedabad from January 12-15. Former batsman PV Shashikanth has been retained as the coach of the side. Karnataka squad: Mayank Agarwal (c), Ravikumar Samarth, Devdutt Padikkal, Nikin Jose (vc), Manish Pandey, Shubhang Hegde, Sharath Srinivas

Apraava Energy secures 300 MW wind energy project in Karnataka's Aski

Integrated energy solutions provider Apraava Energy on Wednesday announced that it has secured a 300 MW wind energy project in Aski, Karnataka. The project is part of the 1,200 MW auction capacity of Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS)-connected wind power projects (Tranche-XIV) from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), the company said. The construction of the project will be completed within the stipulated timelines as per Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), which is for a period of 25 years at a competitive tariff of Rs 3.24/kWh, it said in a release. As part of the agreement, Apraava Energy will be responsible for acquiring the land, developing the wind farm, and establishing the grid infrastructure up to the metering point at the ISTS grid substation. The company's current RE portfolio (Solar and Wind) stands at 1,176 MW, with projects spread across the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Karnataka, it said. "This is ou

Karnataka announces mandatory 7-day isolation for Covid-19 patients

The mandatory seven-day home isolation rule comes as Karnataka is witnessing an uptick in Covid-19 cases

Govt well prepared: Health Minister on 34 cases of JN.1 variant in K'taka

Earlier, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar urged the public to not panic while assuring that everything is fine so far

By April, 1,400 new electric buses will be inducted in BMTC: Karnataka CM

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that 1,400 new electric buses will be added to the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation by April next year. In the first phase, he flagged off 100 non-AC electric buses of the BMTC at Vidhana Soudha here. "So far, Karnataka women have undertaken 120 crore rides in state transport buses for free since the launch of the Shakti scheme. A total of 40 lakh people travel on BMTC every day. In this, women of all castes, all religions and all walks of life are travelling for free," he said. The new electric buses have been added to promote public transport services and also curb increasing vehicular pollution in the city, he added. Siddaramaiah accused the BJP of criticising its free bus travel service for women and questioned why it did not implement this welfare scheme when it was in power. He also explained the effective results of this scheme. "Due to our guarantees, the purchasing power of people and the economic activity

Karnataka CM launches registration of fifth poll guarantee 'Yuva Nidhi'

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday launched the registration of the fifth and last poll guarantee 'Yuva Nidhi' here offering unemployment assistance to graduates and diploma holders. The disbursement of the scheme will start from January 12, 2024, which is the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. The scheme offers monetary assistance of Rs 3,000 to the graduates and Rs 1,500 to the diploma holders who passed in the 2022-23 academic year. The money would be given to those who do not get a job even after completion of 180 days from the date of passing of the degree/diploma, officials said, adding that the candidates are required to prove domicile of Karnataka for a minimum of six years. The unemployment allowance would be given for a period of two years from the date of announcement of the result or till he/she becomes employed/self-employed whichever is earlier. The amount will be directly transferred to the bank account of the beneficiaries. Candidates who are ..

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Woman dead, 135 hospitalised due to suspected food poisoning in Karnataka

A woman died and 70 others were hospitalised in a suspected case of food poisoning in Hoskote in Bengaluru Rural limits, police said on Monday. Police said they suspect the cause of food poisoning to be an edible offering at a place of worship in the area. Some of those hospitalised have been discharged while others are still undergoing treatment. The health department is closely monitoring the situation. As of now, it is suspected to be a case of food poisoning, but since the investigation is in the initial stage, the exact cause cannot be ascertained at present, they added. Preliminary inquiry has revealed that on Saturday, most of them had visited a temple in Hoskote town where they ate 'prasad'. A day later, a few among those complained of dysentery and vomiting after which they rushed to hospitals for treatment. A woman who complained of the same symptoms was admitted in one of these hospitals on Sunday afternoon and died this morning, a senior police officer said. Many othe

K'taka Minister sparks controversy with 'farmers wish for droughts' remark

Karnataka Minister for Sugar and Agriculture Marketing Shivanand Patil's statement that farmers wish for repeated droughts in the state so that their loans get waived has caused a stir, with the opposition on Monday terming it as an 'affront' to the farming community and seeking his removal from the Ministry. Coming down heavily on the Congress government over the remark, the BJP has urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to take his resignation. Patil had in September stoked a controversy for his statement that cases of farmer suicides started rising after the compensation amount to the kin of the deceased was hiked from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. Speaking at an event in Belagavi on Sunday, Patil said, "Krishna river water is free, current is also free. The Chief Minister also gave seeds and fertilizer. Farmers will only wish that there should be repeated droughts, because their loans will be waived. You should not wish that way -- even if you don't wish there will be drought once in ...

Party confused; don't implement what they promise: Kavitha hits out at Cong

"Congress forgets all promises as soon as it wins elections. They promised to provide six guarantees in Karnataka, but nothing has been done as of now," K Kavitha said.

Shops must have 60% Kannada language nameplates by Feb 28: BBMP chief

After issuing the notice, they will be given time till February 28 to implement Kannada language nameplates and submit compliance to the respective zone commissioners," Tushar Giri Nath said

Govt to decide on Hijab issue after looking into it deeply: K'taka Minister

"When the Hijab is not banned where is the question of lifting the ban," he questioned

Caste census not done systematically, new survey must be done: Yediyurappa

Veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa on Sunday said state's Socio-Economic and Education Survey, popularly known as the "caste census," was not done systematically, and urged the Congress government in Karnataka to get a fresh survey done and present the facts before the people. Karnataka's two dominant communities -- Vokkaliags and Lingayats -- too have expressed disapproval about the survey, calling it unscientific, and have demanded that it be rejected and a fresh survey to be conducted. "There is a feeling in everyone's mind that the survey has not been done systematically. I too have a similar opinion. So, a fresh cast census has to be done and facts have to be made known to people. I urge the government to make honest efforts in this regard," Yediyurappa said. Yediyurappa, a former Chief Minister hails from the Lingayat community. The then Siddaramaiah-led Congress government (2013-2018) in 2015 had commissioned the social-economic and educational survey, popularly known as the

Govt only contemplating lifting ban on Hijab: Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday clarified that the administration was only contemplating lifting the ban on wearing hijab in educational institutions in the state and a decision will be taken after holding discussions at the government level. Addressing reporters here, he said, "We haven't done it (revoking Hijab ban) yet. Someone asked me a question (on lifting Hijab ban). I replied that the government is considering revoking it. Asked whether it will be done in this academic year, the CM said it will be done after discussing at the government level. The clarification comes a day after he said that there was no restriction on wearing the religious head scarf in educational institutions and observed that choice of dress and food is personal. The Congress government has come under sharp criticism from the opposition BJP over the announcement on hijab. The saffron party stated that the government's move raised concerns about the "secular nature" of educational ...