Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday hit out at the opposition BJP questioning the contribution of the party in taking up development works in Bengaluru when its government was in power for four years in the state. His comments came in response to the BJP's accusation that no development work was taking place in Bengaluru, the state capital. "We came just six months ago. Before that, the BJP was in power for four years. Did they make 'Brand Bengaluru'? What did they do in four years," Siddaramaiah asked while talking to reporters here. 'Brand Bengaluru' is an initiative of the Congress government aimed at developing Bengaluru into a global city. "They (BJP) couldn't even fill potholes. People (Judges) in the High Court were scolding them and passing strictures and comments as well. What moral right do they (BJP) have to talk about Bengaluru," the Chief Minister said. Regarding the BJP's allegations that the governance has taken a beating as "all the ministers have ..
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge Wednesday asked the Central government to release Rs 18,171 crore from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for Karnataka reeling under the impact of severe drought. Raising the matter in the House during the Zero Hour, the Congress president said Karnataka is grappling with the most severe drought in 123 years and the damage to crops is estimated at over Rs 35,162 crore. According to him, the damage to crops ranges from 40-90 per cent. Kharge said the state government has sought Rs 18,171 crore from the NDRF to help the affected people. "This financial support is crucial for providing input subsidies, gratuitous relief and implementing other immediate growth measures due to low rainfall (in Karnataka)," the senior Congress leader said. He further highlighted that water levels in various reservoirs have reached an alarmingly low mark and there may also be a shortage of drinking water in the coming days. Kharge also
Informing that all seven deceased workers were from the state of Bihar, he stated that those injured in the incident would receive Rs 50,000 each
Amazon.in on Monday announced the expansion of its Amazon Future Engineer (AFE) program to introduce advanced coding and artificial intelligence (AI) modules in 100 Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society (KREIS) schools. The company said in a statement it will also provide digital infrastructure enhancements for 30 KREIS schools. "This expansion will impact over 13,000 students in grades six to eight across 30 districts of Karnataka," it said. The expanded module will enable students to develop complex computer applications incorporating advanced programming concepts like control conditions, variables, and functions, the company said. "Additionally, through project-based learning, students will also be introduced to the basics of AI with a further understanding of its relevance, future possibilities, and impact on their lives and the world around them," the statement added. This programme will complement the current courses in coding, logical sequencing, learning
Crossing the majority mark of 90, the Congress has secured 63 seats in the 119-member Telangana Assembly, while the incumbent BRS has secured 40 seats, as per the latest trends
The Central Bureau of Investigation will probe into the financial irregularities that took place in three cooperative banks in Karnataka, the state government said on Saturday. In a post on 'X', Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said: "It has been approved to hand over the scams of Guru Raghavendra Cooperative Bank, Vasishtha Bank and Guru Sovereign Bank to the CBI." Thousands of depositors had invested their lifetime savings in the bank, keeping their dreams like marriage of children, buying their own house as a basis for their retirement life. All of them are clueless about their future life due to bankers' fraud, the chief minister said. "Even when I was the Leader of the Opposition earlier, I was vocal inside and outside the House and participated in protests to get justice for the defrauded depositors. Even then, it was our insistence that this case should be investigated by CBI," he stated. "I have seen the frustration and suffering from those who have lost their deposit money. For
Some of the big-ticket investment proposals received by the state include Foxconn, IBC, AMD, Qualcomm, Applied Materials, Marubeni and Tata Technologies
Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) Managing Director Anjum Parwez on Thursday said soon passengers depending on different modes of public transport like Metro, cab and buses can travel using a single smart card. Speaking at a session on "The C.A.S.E. for Future Mobility" at the 'Bengaluru Tech Summit-23' here, he said the Union Government has planned to introduce a single smart card for the passengers traveling in different public transports. It is a dream project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, six City Corporations will get the facility soon. Bangalore Metro was committed to ensure eco-friendly activities and in order to encourage eco-friendly traffic systems, Parwez said, Metro stations were facilitated with two-wheeler and three-wheeler electric vehicle charging units. Uber India Director Sanjay Chadha, who was part of the panel said the passengers should shift from cabs to public transport like buses to ensure free flow of traffic and to reduce traffic
Long touted as India's Silicon Valley, Bengaluru has emerged as the biggest hub for most valued companies started by self-made entrepreneurs in this millennium, a report said on Thursday. A majority 129 such industry leaders are from the Karnataka capital, which is ahead of Mumbai (78), and Gurugram and New Delhi (49), as per a report by Hurun India. Radhakishan Damani of Avenue Supermarkets, which runs the D-Mart retail chain, leads the list of top 200 self-made entrepreneurs of the millennium as the 2000-founded company has a market capitalisation of Rs 2.38 lakh crore as of September. Binny Bansal and Sachin Bansal-founded Flipkart from Bengaluru comes second with an equity value of Rs 1.19 lakh crore, while Gurugram-headquartered Zomato founded by Deepinder Goyal comes third with a market capitalisation of Rs 86,835 crore. The list includes both listed and unlisted entities, and Hurun India's founder and managing director Anas Rahman Junaid said they have taken into account the
Landowners or developers of a layout will not have any right over roads and other services once they relinquish control over it to the civic bodies, the Karnataka High Court said, upholding a judgement of a single judge bench. The Upkar Residences had filed a petition before the single judge bench against Pabba Reddy Kodandarami Reddy of Sree Lakshmi Venkateshwara Towers, Outer Ring Road, Bellandur seeking right of ingress and egress of the public in the approved layout. Reddy had contended that it was a gated community and the roads were meant for exclusive use of the residents. The single judge bench in its order passed on November 29, 2022 held that there was no concept of gated community and Reddy cannot interdict the use of roads by the public. Reddy had challenged this by way of an appeal which was heard by a division bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Krishna S Dixit. Dismissing the appeal, the division bench said, We decline indulgence in the matter being
Speaking to ANI after casting his vote, the Congress leader said, "Congress will make the government with a two-thirds majority. We will repeat Karnataka results in Telangana.
Information Technology industry veteran T V Mohandas PaI's post on social media about Hyderabad's potential in dethroning Bengaluru from its exalted IT city status, has elicited a rebuke from the state government with Minister Priyank Kharge stating that it has become a habit for some people to speak taking an anti-Karnataka stand. Kharge, the Minister for IT & BT, on Wednesday said, not a single company, which has come to the negotiation table of the Government of Karnataka, has left the state. Pai earlier today in a post on 'X' tagging Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said, "Will Hyderabad Dethrone Bangalore's IT Status? Continued neglect of Bengaluru by successive govts over last 10 years has led to this. Hope govt shows more energy to improve city." Interestingly the tweet came on a day, when the city is hosting the 'Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS)', the annual global tech event promoted and organised by the state government. "I feel that ...
Information technology sector is cornerstone of state's economy, says Chief Minister
Minister says state is aiming to be 'investor destination, startup hub, innovation capital'
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Online travel and related services provider Booking Holdings, which runs the website booking.com and agoda.com among others, on Wednesday announced the official opening of its centre of excellence in Bengaluru. The new facility which will serve as a hub for specialised and highly skilled technology talent supporting the company's growth and vision, the company said in a press release. With a projected investment of USD 250 million over five years, it is expected that 1,000 jobs will be created in Bengaluru by the end of 2026, the release said. Booking Holdings India General Manager Randhir Bindra said the centre will enable the company to tap into the city's world-class talent pool. It will further accelerate innovation to support transformation of the travel experience and unlock new potential for the company to meet the ever-evolving needs of its business and customers, he added. Initially, the work of the centre will focus on expanding capabilities in fintech, data analytics an
The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday allowed Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar to withdraw his appeal against a single judge order over the issue of sanction to the CBI to prosecute him in assets case. The court allowed the deputy CM to file a memo seeking to withdraw the appeal filed by him challenging the earlier order. The single judge bench had refused to quash the sanction granted by the previous government to the CBI to prosecute him. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi who appeared on video conference arguing for Shivakumar said that since the sanction that is under challenge has been withdrawn by the incumbent government, the issue has become infructuous and therefore he has instructions to withdraw it. "The practical issue is very simple. The Writ is filed challenging a sanction. Today, the sanction under challenge is withdrawn. Somebody will challenge, some will not (the sanction) but that is not of concern today. It (Appeal) is infructuous. It is liable to be allowed
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said the government would unveil a revised biotech policy at the Bengaluru Tech Summit-2023, an annual global tech event which took off here. Speaking at the inauguration of the three-day BTS, Siddaramaiah also said the state is set to launch the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics, and Extended Reality (AVGC-XR) policy. "As we continue to champion advancements in biotechnology, I am thrilled to announce that revised biotech policy is set to be unveiled at the Bangalore Tech Summit," the chief minister said. This policy revision reflects the Karnataka government's commitment to staying ahead of all and fostering growth in this critical sector, he added. Siddaramaiah said that recognising the evolving landscape technology and creativity, the Karnataka government understands the importance of animation, visual effects, gaming, and comics. "It gives me immense pleasure to share that the Government of Karnataka is set to launch
The Karnataka government has approved 62 industrial investment proposals worth Rs 3,607.19 crore with an employment generation potential of 10,755 within the state. The proposals were cleared by the State Level Single Window Clearance Committee, headed by Large and Medium Industries and Infrastructure Development Minister M B Patil at a meeting here on Tuesday. Eight of them envisaged more than Rs 50 crore investment, totaling Rs 2,088.44 crore. These hold the potential to create 6,360 jobs, the minister's office said in a statement on Wednesday. Some of the top investors include Texcon Steels, Hundri Sugars and Ethanol Private Ltd, Bren Life Sciences, Alpine Ethanol, Virupaksha Laboratories and Qualcomm India. Of the total 62 proposals, 51 investment projects are between Rs 15 crore and Rs 50 crore, totaling Rs 941.40 crore, promising employment generation potential of 4,395 within Karnataka, the statement said. Three projects with an additional investment of Rs 577.35 crore were
The action comes after the Centre issued an advisory to States and Union Territories urging them to immediately review public health and hospital preparedness measures