No homework for Class 1 and 2 in Karnataka, action to be taken against violating schools

Education

The affiliation certificates of those schools flouting norms will be at risk, warned the Karnataka Department of Primary and Secondary Education.

TNM Staff

Suspicious of schools violating the no homework rule for Classes 1 and 2, the Karnataka Department of Primary and Secondary Education on Friday issued a circular stating that the affiliation certificates of those schools flouting norms will be at risk. “For students of Class 1 and 2, no homework should be given. Schools must only provide textbooks prescribed by the NCERT for Classes 1 to 5. If any schools found violating these, then the affiliation of such schools will be at risk,” the circular reads. Earlier in May, the department had issued an order stating that homework must not be given to children studying in Classes 1 and 2 after consulting with the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT). “We have reason to believe that all schools are not following this rule. The initial order had not mentioned penalties for flouting norms. Now, we have mentioned that the affiliation of the schools violating the norms will be taken away. If that happens, they cannot admit children into the school or teach them,” a senior official with the Department of State Education Research and Training said. The department has also directed all Commissioner-level authorities to constitute special vigilance teams and conduct random checks on schools to catch violators. “There is a reason why the no homework rule was brought in. Most of the children in government schools come from low income backgrounds and their parents do not have the time to make them do homework. Besides, the children are far too young to be given homework. School should be a place where they develop social skills, mingle with other children, learn the basic subjects. It’s a time in their lives where extra curriculars is important. Homework can be given to children who are much older,” the official added. The department in its earlier order had mandated that books for children studying in Classes 1 and 2 must not exceed 100 pages and every third Saturday of the month must be observed as “no-bag day”. “We had received complaints from some parents that the schools were not following the rules. Hence, we have revised the order now. Stringent action will be taken,” he added.    

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Bengaluru man found dead in his car, friends allege harassment at work

Crime

Kaushik Shetty was working as a financial planner with an American firm Northern Trust.

TNM Staff

A Bengaluru man was found dead in his car which was filled with smoke on Friday afternoon on MVIT Road in Sathanur. The victim has been identified as 34-year-old Kaushik Shetty who was working as a financial planner with an American firm Northern Trust. He used to report to the firm’s office in Manyata Tech Park in the city. His family and friends had approached the police as he went missing after he left his Frazer Town residence on Thursday morning. His family came to know that he did not reach office and they panicked as he did not return home. A missing person’s complaint was filed in Pulikeshi Nagar Police Station on Thursday night itself. Based on credible information, his family reached MVIT Road where a car matching their description was found. They found the car was locked and was filled with smoke. Upon breaking the car windows, they recovered his partially burnt body. Police have also found two bottles of petrol from the car which suggests that Kaushik may have attempted to take his own life by setting fire. Preliminary investigation suggests that Kaushik died due to asphyxiation and not due to burn injuries. Police have sent his body for post-mortem. A case of unnatural death has been registered in Bagalur Police Station. Meanwhile, his friends have told police that he was facing harassment at work. Police are probing all angles in the case. “His family told us that he was a happy man. We are still questioning his colleagues,” Kala Krishnamurthy, DCP North, told Deccan Herald. He is survived by his wife and six-month-old child. If you are aware of anyone facing mental health issues or feeling suicidal please provide help. Karnataka has a 24-hour helpline for those seeking help. Sahai in Karnataka: 24-hour helpline numbers: 080- 65000111, 65000222    

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Post LS rout in Karnataka, Congress makes strong comeback in local body polls

Politics

Out of the 1221 wards, the Congress won 509. The BJP and the Congress won 366 and 160 seats respectively.

TNM Staff

A week after its worst-ever drubbing in the Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka, the Congress has emerged as the most successful party in the recently concluded Urban Local Body elections.   Among a total of 1221 wards across 20 districts, which went to polls on May 29, the Congress won 509. The BJP and the JD(S) won 366 and 160 respectively. A total of 160 seats were won by independent candidates. Among other parties, only the CPI(M) and BSP won two and three seats each. Unlike the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress and JD(S) contested these elections separately for seven City Municipal Councils, 714 seats in 30 Town Municipal Councils and 290 seats in 19 Town Panchayats. Of the 1,361 seats in 63 civic bodies, elections were held in 1,221 seats in 56 civic bodies spread over 20 of the 22 districts across the southern state. Polls were not held for 46 seats in Bengaluru Rural and 94 seats in Shivamogga in the Malnad region due to legal cases pending in these two districts with regards to delimitation and reservations. Of the 217 seats in 7 city councils, the Congress won 90, the BJP 56, the JD(S) 30, and Independents and others 41. Of the 714 seats in 30 town councils, the Congress won 322, the BJP 184, the JD(S) 102, and Independents and others 106. Of the 290 seats in 19 town panchayats, the BJP won 126, the Congress 97, the JD(S) 34, and Independents 33. Reacting to the victory, KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao questioned how BJP lost after performing so well in the Lok Sabha elections.  He tweeted, “@INCIndia wins 509/1221 of the #KarnatakaUrbanLocalBodiesElections Winning almost 42% of the seats, it clearly shows that the people of Karnataka are with the Congress. What surprises me is how did BJP lose after winning by huge margins in the Loksabha. Needs investigation.” @INCIndia wins 509/1221 of the #KarnatakaUrbanLocalBodiesElections Winning almost 42% of the seats, it clearly shows that the people of Karnataka are with the Congress. What surprises me is how did BJP lose after winning by huge margins in the Loksabha. Needs investigation. pic.twitter.com/wa9uRcMp4r — Dinesh Gundu Rao / ದಿನೇಶ್ ಗುಂಡೂರಾವ್ (@dineshgrao) May 31, 2019 Meanwhile, in Bengaluru BBMP limits, the BJP and the Congress won one seat each in the bye-polls held on the same day.          

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States seeking clarity in booming hemp oil market

Congress threw states a curveball when it legalized CBD.

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Heat wave predicted in north Karnataka this weekend

Weather

A disaster management official said that Deputy Commissioners of these districts are following the action plan chalked out in 2018.

TNM Staff

Representational Image/ PTI

Districts in north interior Karnataka, especially in Hyderabad-Karnataka region will continue to face heatwave like conditions over the weekend. This is the second heat wave in the region within the span of a month. At the same time, rest of the state including capital Bengaluru has been receiving pre-monsoon rains at regular intervals providing some relief. Belagavi, Vijayapura, Bidar, Bagalkot, Dharwad, Gadag, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Ballari, Haveri, Koppal and Raichur are the 12 districts in north-interior Karnataka. The heat wave alert issued by the Indian Meteorological Department has said that these heat wave conditions will exist till June 2. IMD said the entire region will see a 3- 5°C. increase from normal temperatures. “The heat wave conditions are expected to prevail over the next two days. Temperatures for most times of the day will be between 40°C.and 45°C. We have alerted the Disaster Management Department who have taken mitigatory steps,” Sunil M Gavaskar, Meteorologist, at the Karnataka State Disaster Monitoring Centre, said. He added, “This is not an isolated incident. Everywhere we are noticing these extremely dry conditions. Normally during summer, these conditions are not uncommon, but generally over the years we have been seeing them more frequently. The areas that come under the influence of heat waves are increasing gradually". A disaster management official said that Deputy Commissioners of these districts are following the action plan chalked out in 2018. These steps include tweaking school timings for children, restrictions on doing outdoor labour work during noon. Heat wave While there is no global definition, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) describes heat wave as a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature that occurs during the pre-monsoon summer season. According to the World Health Organisation, the heat wave is on if the daily maximum temperature of more than five consecutive days exceeds the average maximum temperature by 5°C. The extreme temperatures and resultant atmospheric conditions adversely affect health and cause dehydration, heat exhaustion, physiological stress and sometimes even death    

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Water scarcity forces schools in coastal Karnataka to postpone reopening

Civic

While some schools have postponed the re-opening, others are cutting down on class hours.

Prajwal Bhat

Image for representation

The severe water crisis has forced schools in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts to postpone their re-opening for the new academic year. Schools were scheduled to reopen earlier this week. However, due to lack of water, officials of many schools have decided to either send students back home after the morning session or have the reopening postponed to next week. “We had initially planned on re-opening the school on 27th May. Now, due to the water crisis, we had to postpone by a week and will reopen only on June 3. Our major challenge was to provide water for sanitation, which we have now stored and believe that it will suffice until rains start. The food provided in our cafeteria is prepared at  different places. Hence we don’t need to provide water for the preparation of the food”, Anuradha Shivaram, Principal, Manipal School in Mangaluru told TNM.. Some school authorities say that the situation is so severe that they are looking to ensure water supply by hiring water tankers. "We have asked permission from the Block Education Officer to reopen the school from June 3. We hope water is provided by then or else we have no option but to opt for tankers,” Jalajakshi, Principal of Canara High School in Dongarakere in Dakshina Kannada said. A lack of pre-monsoon rainfall in the summer months had led to severe water shortage in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts with the water levels in the Thumbe and Baje resevoirs dropping to critical levels.  Read: Mangaluru gripped by water scarcity, unprecedented situation sees residents struggle Water rationing has been put in place in both Udupi and Mangaluru. In Mangaluru, water is being supplied continuously for four days followed by no water supply for three days. In Udupi, water is being supplied once in three days.  Read: Udupi stares at water scarcity, Municipal Council taps Swarna river to meet water needs School authorities in Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada have already arranged for tankers to provide water for the students. "Till now around two schools complained of water shortage. The respective panchayats ensured that these schools are provided with sufficient water through tankers. Most of the schools are sourcing water from their wells. Meanwhile, I have directed school principals that in case of severe water shortage for sanitation, they could cut short school hours, “ said N Shivprakash, Block Education Officer, Bantwal. Many schools were forced to turn to wells and borewells to ensure water was available due to the lack of water supply from the municipal bodies. "If the water shortage continues, then the school will only function for half a day from June 3. The school has been managing basic sanitation as the students are provided with water from the wells in the campus. The students will have extra classes during October vacations or on Saturdays once the water crisis is over,” Nirmala B, Principal, Volakadu Government High School in Udupi told TNM. School authorities in the two districts are hopeful that the measures taken by them can help them manage till the monsoon arrives.They are also planning to implement rainwater harvesting in their schools to avoid this kind of a situation in the future.   With inputs from  Arza Safiya, Story Infinity (Subs and Scribes Media Ventures LLP.)

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Bengaluru corporators wear Modi masks to celebrate colleague’s Lok Sabha victory

Politics

A Congress corporator commented that the BJP should be re-branded “Modi Party”.

TNM Staff

On Thursday, almost 100 BJP corporators walked in to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike council meeting  wearing masks of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The masks were to celebrate the victory of former BBMP corporator S Muniyappa from the Kolar Lok Sabha seat. Muniyappa had defeated eight-time Congress MP from Kolar KH Muniyappa. But the masks made tempers flare in the council, that anyway usually sees heated arguments. Affronted by the celebratory mood of the opposition, Congress corporator Abdul Majid commented that the BJP should be re-branded “Modi Party”. “We don’t know where Sab ka saat, sab ka vikas went. They (BJP) lied and came to power. Let Modi be accepting of all languages and all religions,” Abdul Majid added. “Yours is not BJP it's an EVM Party. You have cheated and won. BJP did not win the elections. EVMs did,” Congress corporator K Venkatesh said. Reacting to the statements made by Congress corporator, leader of Opposition in the BBMP Council Prabhakar Reddy said that the Congress leaders would “quake in their boots” if they even hear Modi’s name. “Congress leaders are obviously quaking in their boots listening to Modi’s name. Like a mole on one’s face, Congress has one a single seat from Karnataka in the Lok Sabha elections. At least they should learn their lesson now,” he said. Meanwhile, Yelachenahalli BJP corporator V Balakrishna told the council members that garbage has been piling up on streets and empty plots in his ward and despite multiple complaints, the problem was not being solved. “Let us tell Modi about it. He will write a letter and release funds. Then we can clean it up,” quipped Congress corporator GK Venkatesh. However, accusing him of making disparaging remarks on her, BJP corporator Mamta Vasudev screamed at Venkatesh. “He (Venkatesh) was speaking against Narendra Modi and I could not stand by and watch. Besides, he commented up on the way I dress and my lipstick. Why should I be quiet? That’s why I shouted abuses at him,” she said. Soon after this statement was made, a ruckus erupted in the council. BJP and Congress corporators arrived at the well of the council and began hurling accusations at each other. The Mayor and BBMP Commissioner intervened and put a stop to the arguments.    

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