K’taka CM Kumaraswamy meets Modi, seeks funds for drought relief

Politics

The Karnataka CM also urged the central government to expedite the construction of the suburban railway project in Bengaluru

TNM Staff

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 15th meeting of the governing council of NITI Aayog in New Delhi on Saturday. In his speech at the meeting, Kumaraswamy stressed on the need for drought relief measures in the state and requested the central government for aid. “Memorandum was submitted to Government of India regarding drought seeking financial assistance of Rs 2064 crore under NDRF. The high-level committee is yet to be convened to decide on the quantum of relief from NDRF," he said. Before the Lok Sabha elections, the Karnataka government had requested Rs 2,063 crore for drought relief during the rabi season. At the time, the Karnataka government said that 156 out of 175 taluks in the state, almost 9 out of every ten taluks, were drought hit. In his speech, Kumaraswamy also informed the central government that there was a 45% deficiency in rainfall this year. A lack of pre-monsoon rainfall caused water scarcity problems not only in the arid northern Karnataka region but also in central and coastal Karnataka. He further urged the central government to increase the allocation to the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). "The central government has reimbursed over Rs 1,757 crore. Government of India is yet to reimburse over Rs 1,500 crore advance paid by the state government over and above its share. I request the Prime Minister to significantly increase the allocation of MGNREGA so that the MGNREGA workers are not subjected to hardship due to delays in payment of wages,” he said. Meanwhile, Kumaraswamy also urged the central government to expedite the construction of the suburban railway project in Bengaluru. “While the state government has given its clearance for the much needed suburban railway project, the Government of India has asked to revisit some of the issues. This may delay the project further. I request the Government of India to clear the project as proposed,” he said in his speech.

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Pay hike, promotions for K’taka police officials soon: Home Minister MB Patil hints

Police

Patil was speaking after a meeting on implementation of the Raghavendra Auradkar committee report which recommended measures including pay hike for police staff.

TNM Staff

Karnataka Home Minister MB Patil hinted that there could be a hike in the salary of police officers working in the state following a meeting held with officials of the Home and Finance Department about the implementation of the Raghavendra Auradkar committee report.  The report has recommended measures including pay hike and promotions for police staff.  Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy called for a detailed report on the salaries of policemen, prison staff and Fire & Emergency Services Department. In the meeting, the Auradkar Committee report was also discussed.  “We discussed all aspects of the report with various department heads and we have requested the Chief Minister to approve the salary hike for policemen and promotions as recommended by the report," MB Patil told reporters following the meeting.  In 2016, a committee headed by Raghavendra Auradkar, ADGP (Recruitment and Training), had recommended 30-35% hike in salary for police personnel. The committee studied the pay scales of police officials in 10 states and found that Karnataka ranked 8th. It recommended a 30-35 % hike in basic pay and liberal rise in their perks for non-IPS personnel. This would mean a rise in pay by Rs 6500 to Rs 8500 in the salary. If the committee's recommendations are implemented, police constables will earn Rs 18,200 instead of Rs 11,600. The report also included allowances for fitness and uniform. There is also a risk allowance of Rs. 2,500 for continuous duty extending beyond two days. MB Patil explained that the increase in salaries would burden the state exchequer with an additional Rs. 600 crore. The Finance Department will consider the recommendations made by the report. "We hope to give the good news to the police within ten days," Patil added. The Auradkar committee was constituted following the threat of strike by personnel working in the police force.   

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Parts of Bengaluru to witness six-hour power cut during weekend: Full list

The power cut will be between 10 am and 4 pm on Saturday and Sunday.

TNM Staff

Several parts of Bengaluru will witness six-hour power cuts on Saturday and Sunday due to maintenance work being carried out on 66/11 KV power lines. The power cut will be between 10 am and 4 pm on both days. The areas to be affected on Saturday include Bagmane Tech Park, Kaggadasapura, Kuddugunmte Palya, Nagavarapalya and Bhuvaneswari Nagar. Over 25 localities will be without power on Sunday. These include: MG Road ·Murphy Town Thamarai Kannan Road Bazaar Street Gangadhar Chetty Road Brigade Road Church Street Rest House Road Residency Road Museum Road St Marks Road Hayes Road Convent Road Crescent Road Kasturba Road Brunton Road Primrose Road Kariyappa Park Manikshaw Parade Ground Halasuru Road Dickenson Road Walton Road Lavelle Road Vittal Malya Road Trinity circle LIDO Mall Commissariat Road Plain Street Infantry Road Kamaraj Road Commercial Street Dispensary Road NP Street Ibrahim Street VP Street Sangam Road SC Garden Old Market Nala road Armstrong Road Jewellers Street Kodandarama Reddy Layout Dharamraja Koil Street Mackan Road Thoppa Mudaliar Road Balaji Koil Street Asharkhan Street Lady Curzon Road Union Street Gem Plaza Infantry Road Safina Plaza Main Guard Road Cubbon Road Union Street Dispensery Road MK Street OPG Road Manyata Tech Park  

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Bengaluru Ponzi scam: IMA founder Mansoor Khan may have fled to Dubai on June 8

Crime

The police are looking into METT Travels, which they believe was the agency that helped Khan obtain his visa.

TNM Staff

Amidst allegations of defrauding over 32,000 people to the tune of Rs 1,700 crore, I Monetary Advisory (IMA), founder Mohammed Mansoor Khan is believed to have fled the country even before the company shut down. Central Crime Branch (CCB) sources revealed that based on a tip off from the RBI, the sleuths had begun investigating Mansoor Khan’s financial dealing a week before he absconded. Documents being circulated on WhatsApp with the insignia of UAE Interior Ministry suggest that Mansoor Khan had fled the country on June 8. CCB sources say that Mansoor Khan was summoned for questioning on June 6 based on directions of DG and IGP Neelamani Raju regarding possible fraudulent activities perpetrated by IMA. The Special Investigating Team (SIT) probing the financial scam believes that Mansoor Khan had prior knowledge about his arrest a month before the scam came to light. “It seems he sketched out an elaborate plan. So far, his wife and two children aged 12 and 4 years are also nowhere to be found. Preliminary probe revealed that they may have fled Bengaluru in late February or early March. We are checking the veracity of the immigration document being circulated on WhatsApp. He had received the visa on May 5, which means he had planned the escape a month in advance,” an SIT source said. SIT sleuths are probing to see whether Mansoor Khan’s family members too fled to Dubai way before he did. “We are in touch with METT Travels, which we believe is the agency Khan used to obtain his visa. We are checking to see if they helped obtain visa for his wife and children as well,” the source added. According to TOI, Mohammed Mansoor Khan could not have fled to Dubai without the help of local authorities. A senior Karnataka Minister is believed to have lobbied aggressively for a Rs 600-crore bailout of Mansoor Khan, the story says. Khan had allegedly approached a bank for the Rs 600-crore loan. However, after the Revenue Department put out a public notice of Mansoor Khan’s fraudulent practices earlier this year, the bank had demanded a no objection certificate (NOC) from the Revenue Department. Mansoor Khan is said to have approached the minister, who obtained the NOC. However, this was allegedly shot down by a senior IAS official, who refused to sign the NOC. “It is possible that Mansoor Khan knew that his company would have to shut down sooner or later and he had made plans to escape before being arrested. He even recorded two sound clips. The bank loan did not come through and he was in a position where he could not pay the premiums to his investors. The number of new investors kept declining too. When the CCB called him for questioning, there was not an inkling that he could have fled or he would have been arrested,” the SIT source added. Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday registered a case of money laundering against IMA Group, for duping over 32,000 investors through its Ponzi scheme. The ED’s zonal office in Bengaluru filed an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) and has added section of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to the ECIR, TOI says. In addition, a 65-year-old investor Sirajuddin, has moved the Karnataka High Court, asking for a CBI probe into the case. Sirajuddin claims that he had invested Rs 10 lakh in IMA in October 2018. The hearing is posted for Monday.    

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Forest official suspended in Kodagu for allowing 890 trees to be axed

Environment

On June 5, 890 trees was axed without the knowledge of the district administration in 80 acres of private land in Galibeedu in Kodagu.

Prajwal Bhat

A forest official in Karnataka's Kodagu district was suspended a week after the issue of 890 trees being axed on private land came to light. Deputy Conservator of Forest, Madikeri division, ML Manjunath, was suspended on Friday. Until a replacement for Manjunath is announced, Maria Christu Raju, DCF, Virajpet division will take up the additional responsibility of acting DCF in the division. On June 5, 890 trees were axed without the knowledge of the district administration on 80 acres of private land in Galibeedu in Kodagu.  The private land is owned by a businessman from Andhra Pradesh. No conversion or axing of trees is allowed in these lands without the permission of the Forest department. The land was also 'bane' land or forest land where only the growth of trees are allowed. However, despite the rules, the district administration found that the businessman had colluded with Manjunath to obtain permission for axing the trees. Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Annies Kanmani Joy confirmed that permission was not given for cutting the trees. "We ordered a revenue inspector to inspect the site and prepared a report after information about the tree cutting was published in media outlets. The axing of trees in Galibeedu area has now been stopped," the DC confirmed. Two days after the issue came to light, Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy also ordered a report to be prepared on the incident and confirmed that no trees would be axed without permission. *ಕೊಡಗು ಜಿಲ್ಲೆ:ಮರ ಕಡಿಯುವುದನ್ನು ನಿಲ್ಲಿಸಲು ಸೂಚನೆ* ಕೊಡಗು ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ 800 ಮರಗಳನ್ನು ಕಡಿಯುವ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಮಾಧ್ಯಮಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿತ್ತರವಾಗಿರುವ ವರದಿಯ ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮುಖ್ಯಮಂತ್ರಿ ಹೆಚ್.ಡಿ.ಕುಮಾರಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಅವರು ಇಂದೇ ಮರಗಳನ್ನು ಕಡಿಯುವುದನ್ನು ನಿಲ್ಲಿಸಿ, ವರದಿಯನ್ನು ನೀಡುವಂತೆ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಅರಣ್ಯ ಸಂರಕ್ಷಣಾಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳಿಗೆ ಸೂಚಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ — CM of Karnataka (@CMofKarnataka) June 7, 2019 Manjunath had come under fire in recent weeks after the farmers from the Karnataka Raita Sangha held a protest singling him out for releasing an elephant captured in Somwarpet taluk of the district at Nagarahole forest range in Mysuru. The protesting farmers were up in arms about the decision to allow the elephant to be released in areas close to where crops were being grown.  The news of the axing of trees comes amid a ban on conversion of land for commercial purposes in the hilly district. The ban has been in place since November 2018 and was imposed in the district following the floods and landslides last year. Since the start of 2019, the district administration has rejected over 700 applications to convert land for commercial purposes. Only small landowners with up to 20 cents of land in non-vulnerable areas of the district have been allowed to convert land for building individual houses. 

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Stalker shoots 50-year-old woman, kills self in Kodagu

Crime

Two years ago, the police had lodged a case of sexual harassment against the suspect, 60-year-old Jagadish Machimada, and the case was being heard at a local court.

Mubarak

In a shocking incident, a stalker shot a woman dead at a bus stand before turning the gun on him and killing himself in Virajpet in Kodagu district on Friday morning. According to the police, two years ago, the 50-year-old victim, Lalitha*, had lodged a case of sexual harassment against the suspect, 60-year-old Jagadish Machimada. She also accused him of rape, following which Jagadish was arrested. He was out on bail. The incident took place at the bus stand in Virajpet taluk of the district on Friday. Lalitha, a resident of the village, was waiting for her bus when Jagadish, who was waiting for her at a nearby plantation, fired at her with a gun. The police confirmed that Lalitha died on the spot. Jagadish is a resident of Balle Madooru, which is near the victim’s village. He is now living in a rented accommodation in Ponnampet in the district. On hearing the gunfire, two local residents tried to save the woman. However, Jagadish fired shots and injured them. "When he saw more people were arriving at the spot, Jagadish immediately fled to a nearby plantation and shot himself,” a police official in Ponnampet told TNM. Meanwhile, both the two residents who were injured are undergoing treatment. The police officials added that a few years ago, Lalitha had acquainted with Jagadish. However, after she lodged a complaint of sexual harassment and rape, Jagadish was arrested. "Despite being out on bail, Jagadish continued to stalk and threaten Lalitha,” a police official said. The victim is survived by two children. (*Name changed to protect identity) Story by Story Infinity (Subs and Scribes Media Ventures LLP.)  

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BJP stages protest in Bengaluru against state government over JSW land deal

Politics

Even as the Karnataka government has re-examine the Jindal land deal, the BJP has warned to continue the protests for the next two days.

TNM Staff

Soon after HD Kumaraswamy-led Karnataka government inducted two independent MLAs into the cabinet in a bid to further stabilise the government, the BJP staged a massive protest in Bengaluru’s Maurya Circle in the city centre. Led by its state president BS Yeddyurappa, Members of Parliament (MPs), Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) and key functionaries along with party workers joined the protest against the state government’s role in the Jindal land deal (JSW Steel Ltd) primarily. The BJP has warned that the protests will continue for the next two days, even as the state government has hit a pause button on its decision to give land to Jindal group’s JSW Steel Ltd in Ballari for iron ore mining. The BJP has said that the protestors will march from Maurya Circle to the Chief Minister’s residence to make their issues heard. At the protest on Friday, former CM Yeddyurappa was flanked by some of the major party leaders, including former Deputy CM KS Eshwarappa, senior BJP MLAs R Ashoka, CT Ravi, Bengaluru South MP Tejassvi Surya and Udupi-Chikkamagaluru MP KS Eshwarappa among others. Speaking at the protest, BJP MLA R Ashoka alleged a nexus between the Congress party and the JSW company. He said, “Congress and Jindal's groups have a close nexus and it’s an open secret. I am not surprised that the Congress has sold lands across the nation at a cheap price to Jindal. It is all a kickback game.” “We are demanding the decision to sell the 3,700 acres of iron-ore land at such a cheap price must be reconsidered,” Tejasvi Surya said. When told that the land deal was penned by the state government when the BJP was in power, MP Shobha Karandlaje said, “If there were any wrongdoings then, the present government must rectify it.” At the protest, the BJP also pointed out the lack of measures to tackle drought and even urged the government to hand over the investigation in the IMA scam to the Central Bureau of Investigation. Read: Karnataka govt to reassess Jindal land deal, what the controversy is all about  

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