IISc Bengaluru students protest, demand justice for security guard who died on campus

Protest

The students are calling for action to be taken against authorities after the death of 23-year-old old security guard Gowtham Biswal.

Geetika Mantri

On June 30, Gowtham Biswal, a 23-year-old security guard at Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru, died after a sliding metal gate weighing about 500 kg fell on him. A case of negligence was registered at the Sadashivnagar police station against the concerned authorities under section 304A of the IPC. Three days since however, students allege that no action has been taken by authorities to punish those responsible. Hundreds of students have been protesting against the IISc Director Anurag Kumar since Monday, demanding justice for Gowtham and that the Centre for Campus Management (CCMD) engineer Col Arun Sharma be suspended for approving the installation of the gate, and not heeding complaints by students as well as security personnel that the gate was not functioning properly. On Wednesday, police officials were called to campus, allegedly by college authorities. "We do not understand why this has been done. It is a peaceful protest," one student told TNM.  No action taken  Some of the nearly 600 protesting students spoke to TNM on the condition of anonymity, describing the developments since Gowtham’s death. There appears to be little official communication from the authorities. Students have been protesting on the campus since Monday, and Wednesday marked the third day of protest. They alleged that the name CCMD engineer’s name on the FIR is incorrect – the first name is recorded as Ajay instead of Arun. However, when some students went to the Sadashivnagar police station to get officials to rectify the same, they were turned away. Seema*, a student protester and PhD student, told TNM that the director had been delaying taking action against Col Sharma. “He says that they will have a council meeting and then take a few weeks to decide on the matter. We don’t want them to wait for 2-3 weeks. Justice delayed is justice denied.” Transparency in investigation Student have also been demanding that the committee that will be set up to investigate the circumstances behind Gowtham’s death should have some student representatives. However, this has not been accepted. Towards the evening on Wednesday, after hundreds had been protesting with cries of “We want justice!”, director Anurag Kumar told students that they will form an internal committee with two external representatives and a report will be given within two weeks. But they are not willing to make the minutes of the meetings public or include any student representatives or even as an observer. Student protester Hari added that the director had told students that Col Sharma would be suspended, but nothing had been given in writing. “The request for transparency is turned down,” he said. Previous incidents of negligence In December 2018, IISc had made news for an accident at the Aerospace Engineering Department’s Laboratory for Hypersonic where a cylinder blast killed a research student, Manoj Kumar, and injured two others. Seema alleges that as a premiere institute in the country, there are protocols for storing sensitive equipment that are to be followed. She alleges that this too was likely a case of negligence. Another student told TNM that a month ago, a part of the ceiling in the new Biological Sciences building had also fallen. There were no injuries, however, students allege that projects are being approved without proper safety measures in place. “It happened to a Gowtham under that gate, but it could have been anyone. It could have been one of us too,” Hari points out. Students also say that they have been receiving indirect threats from authorities against their protest, with authorities saying their degrees and doctorates will be held ransom if they don’t disperse. No clarity on compensation to Gowtham’s family Ramesh*, a PhD student at IISc, says that there has been no clarity on whether Gowtham’s family is going to be given any compensation. Another student, Hari, says that the director had verbally told the protesters on Tuesday that they would award a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of the deceased, but still, there is nothing concrete. 

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Bengaluru’s Corner House and others start ‘bring your own bowl’ initiative to avoid plastic

Environment

BBMP has sent a recommendation to the Karnataka government to ban the use of plastic containers for food packaging.

Theja Ram

On June 10, Corner House, Bengaluru’s popular ice-cream parlour chain, started a “Bring your own bowl” initiative where customers are advised to bring their own bowls and boxes to the outlets in order to avoid using plastic. “We want people to become more conscious about how plastic waste can be reduced by being a little more responsible. Most restaurants use disposable utensils, mostly plastic, because there is shortage of water. Though it helps reduce water consumption, it also means more plastic waste is generated. To avoid this, we have started the campaign. Reusables are the solution to cut down on generating more waste,” says Narayan Rao, owner of Corner House. Corner House is keeping a count of the number of people who are bringing their own bowls and boxes. “The only limitation is that people returning from office or those stopping by don’t come prepared with their own bowls. So, we are announcing that Rs 10 of each order placed by a person with their own bowl will go towards the welfare of dogs at CUPA’s animal shelter. On July 10, we will see how the campaign has fared as we are keeping track of the number of people who are bringing their own utensils. Based on that we will begin more awareness campaigns,” Narayan Rao added. Similarly, Ganesh, owner of By 2 Coffee in Malleshwaram, decided to avoid using plastic while packing food for delivery from his restaurant over a year ago. What began as a campaign to say no to plastic has now become a thriving meal delivery service. At By 2 Coffee, food is packed in steel lunch boxes and customers can either pick up their orders or have it delivered to them. The boxes are to be returned the following morning. “The problem is there is no guarantee whether the customers will return the steel boxes. So we started a deposit system,” Ganesh says. Each customer pays a refundable deposit of Rs 3,000 and the money is repaid once the customer stops the service and returns the boxes. “We had put up a board asking our regular customers to avoid using plastic. So some of them started bringing their own tiffin boxes to pack food. That’s how I got the idea. Now it’s become a full-scale meal delivery system. We have around 150 lunch and dinner boxes being picked up or delivered every day. Each meal costs Rs 90 and contains 15 varieties of food items including salad, sambar, rasam, vegetable curry, rice and so on. Most of our customers are now picking up on the idea and bringing their own boxes,” Ganesh says. Last week, the city’s civic body – Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike – held a consultation meeting with restaurant owners and online food delivery services to switch to reusable packaging for food deliveries. BBMP Assistant Commissioner for Solid Waste Management and the chairman of the plastic committee Randeep says that the committee has sent a recommendation to the Karnataka government to ban the use of plastic containers for food packaging. “Currently, restaurant owners say that the logistical difficulties with reusable containers will be an additional hassle. Since plastic containers are not banned by the government, restaurants continue to use them. But if one of the food delivery services like Swiggy takes the initiative, then others will have to follow suit,” he adds. According to data obtained from the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, each Bengalurean utilises 16 kg of plastic per month on an average; also, 40% of the waste generated in the city is plastic waste. Restaurant owners say they will roll out a pilot project similar to the By 2 Coffee initiative in the coming weeks. “Some restaurants tried to use bagasse containers (made out of sugarcane pulp) and also areca leaves. But these are not viable for food delivery due to leakage issues. We are planning to follow the By 2 Coffee model. Several restaurant owners are keen on doing it and we will begin a pilot project. Based on whether it succeeds or not, we will decide whether it is logistically viable,” says PC Rao, President of Bengaluru Restaurant Owners’ Association. Read: 'Ice cream business is a happy business', says the man who gave Bengaluru the Corner House    

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11 dead, 3 injured after private bus rams into mini truck in Karnataka

Accident

According to eyewitnesses, the bus was speeding when it collided head-on with the truck.

TNM Staff

Eleven persons travelling to a dargah in Karnataka's Chikkaballapura died after a private bus collided with the truck they were in.  At around 12.20 pm on Wednesday, a private bus owned by SKS Travels collided into a Tata Ace mini truck at Bagalahalli near Chintamani. The impact mangled the mini truck resulting in the death of 11 people and injuring three others.  The Chintamani Rural Police say that all eleven people in the Tata Ace died on the spot. The deceased persons were travelling from Chintamani to the dargah in Murugamalla. The bus was travelling from Murugamalla to Bengaluru.  The injured have been rushed to the Chikkaballapura and Kolar district hospitals, where they are undergoing treatment.  "Eyewitness reports state that the driver of the bus was speeding and collided head-on with the Tata Ace near the bend along the road. Several eyewitnesses complained that the private buses plying to and from Murugamalla always end up speeding. The shop owners nearby say that several commuters have nearly escaped death near this bend due to rash driving," Chintamani Rural Police Sub Inspector Jagadish Reddy told TNM.  The driver has absconded from and the police are on the lookout for him.  

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No threat to coalition government in Karnataka: Congress

Politics

This comes a day after party lawmakers Anand Singh and Ramesh Jarkiholi submitted their resignations from their respective assembly segments.

IANS

Unfazed by the resignation of its two legislators, Congress leaders on Tuesday claimed that there was no threat to its year-old coalition government in Karnataka. "Our government in Karnataka will complete its five-year term, though the BJP has been trying to topple it since day one," Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said in New Delhi. Venugopal, who is in-charge of the party's state unit affairs, however, said stern action would be taken against rebels if they indulge in anti-party activities and try to weaken the coalition government. Venugopal's assertion on the continuity of the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)-Congress government came a day after party lawmakers Anand Singh and Ramesh Jarkiholi submitted their resignations from their respective assembly segments in the state to Assembly Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar on Monday. "The party members should not violate the party discipline by going public against their leaders or comment on the functioning of the government. They can express their concerns or grievances in the party forum but not in the media," said Venugopal after discussing the fresh crisis in the party with senior party leader Mallikarjun Kharge from Karnataka in the national capital. Venugopal also claimed that Singh and Jarkiholi would withdraw their resignations and remain with the party. "I spoke to both of them on phone. They assured me they would remain in the party if their demands were met. The party's state leaders and the chief minister (H.D. Kumaraswamy) will discuss their issues with them," added Venugopal. Echoing Venugopal, state's Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader and former chief minister Siddaramaiah also claimed that the coalition government was safe and would remain in office. "None of our legislators will quit the party or resign from their assembly seat. The government is 100 per cent safe," Siddaramaiah told reporters in Bengaluru earlier in the day. Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of being involved in toppling the coalition government in the state, Siddaramaiah said the opposition party (BJP) would not succeed in its attempt as in the past. "The BJP's central and state leaders have been trying to oust our government by luring our legislators with money and power since May 2018. They won't succeed even this time," said Siddaramaiah.  Party's senior leader and state Water Resources Minister D.K. Shivakumar said there was no cause to panic over the survival of the government, as the BJP dare not poach the party's rebels to reduce the combined majority of the ruling allies. "As no legislator of any party is ready to face mid-term polls a year after the May 2018 assembly elections, our government will continue and complete its term. The party will address the concerns of the rebels if they bring to our notice," Shivakumar told reporters. Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, who belongs to the Congress, also claimed that the coalition government would survive as it had a majority in the assembly.

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Deficit pre-monsoon and delayed rainfall leads to water shortage in Karnataka

Water

156 out of 175 taluks in the state have been declared drought hit.

IANS

Image for representation

For the first time in many years, Karnataka is facing water shortage due to deficit pre-monsoon, delay in the onset of southwest monsoon and uneven spread of rainfall across the state, a senior official said on Tuesday. "Around 37 per cent overall deficit in pre-monsoon showers from March to May, 10-day delay in the arrival of the southwest monsoon and Vayu cyclone disrupting rains have dried up water sources in lakes, tanks, ponds and wells across the state for drinking, irrigation and livestock," senior metrological scientist C.N. Prabhu told IANS. Unlike last year, when the southern state had an overall 6 per cent deficit monsoon from June to September, Prabhu said the prospects of making up for the 23 per cent rain deficit in June depended on cloud formations, moisture content and wind movement over the next three months. "Failure of pre-monsoon showers, delay in the arrival of monsoon and extended summer over the last four weeks have affected the water bodies, reducing water levels in rivers, reservoirs and their catchment areas. Water supply in towns and cities has also been affected," lamented Prabhu. As per the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) data, the state received 167mm of rainfall against 216 mm normal, resulting in a 23 per cent deficit. The coastal area, where the monsoon enters the state from Kerala and the Arabia Sea, recorded 32 per cent deficit with 645 mm rain against 946 mm normal. In contrast, the north interior region had 3 per cent more (118mm) rain than 114 mm normal. In south interior region, including Malnad, the deficit was 28 per cent (113 mm) from 157 mm normal. "Pre-monsoon failure resulted in a record 75 per cent deficit (45 mm) against 179 mm normal in the coastal region, 50 per cent deficit (44 mm) from 85 mm normal in north interior area and 21 per cent deficit (115mm) from 145 mm normal in south interior and Malnad areas," said Prabhu, a weather scientist in the Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA). As a monsoon dependent state, Karnataka heavily relies on southwest and northeast monsoons for rains to fill its rivers, reservoirs in the catchment areas and dams built across the Cauvery, Tungabhadra and Krishna rivers in its southern, central and northern regions for drinking, hydel power generation, irrigation and livestock across cities, towns and villages. "A deficit rainfall spells trouble for the 11-million people in Bengaluru, which is mainly dependent on rainfed Cauvery, about 120km southwest from the city," said Prabhu. With hundreds of lakes and tanks drying up across the city, there is no piped water supply by the state-run water board to one-third of the city, especially in the south east and north east, forcing people to depend on tankers and borewells for water supply.  

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CM Kumaraswamy visits US, woos businesses to invest in Karnataka

Business

Kumaraswamy invited US businesses to participate in the 'Global Investors' Meet' the state would host in January 2020 on opportunities, incentives it offers to potential investors.

IANS

Showcasing Karnataka as a favourite investment destination in India, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Tuesday invited US businesses to invest in the southern state. "I seek your investments in our state, which offers huge opportunities in manufacturing and services sectors for US businesses," Kumaraswamy told investors at a seminar in Maryland's Silver Spring near Washington. Though on a week-long private visit to the US since June 29, the Chief Minister addressed US investors and NRIs at the seminar on "New business opportunities in Karnataka", organised by the US-India Small and Medium Enterprise Council. According to a copy of his speech shared with media by the Chief Minister's Office in Bengaluru, Kumaraswamy invited US businesses to participate in the 'Global Investors' Meet' the state would host in January 2020 on opportunities, incentives and facilities it offers to potential investors. "I seek your participation to make the Global Investors' Meet a success as it is meant to attract investments from domestic and overseas firms with global linkages for job creation," he said. Holding his state was ready for business as never before, the Chief Minister said his coalition government made doing business easier and smarter by ensuring 98.6 per cent compliance to the Business Reforms Action Plan norms. "Our government is drafting a new industrial policy for 2019-24 to offer a robust ecosystem to spur economic growth, create jobs and make the state a global manufacturing and services hub," he told the gathering. Claiming that Karnataka was ranked first in the country to attract investments and Bengaluru rated as the world's most dynamic city, Kumaraswamy said the state's growth was due to its pro-active, business-friendly policies, good infrastructure, skilled manpower and ecosystem for nurturing innovation. "Karnataka contributes 50 per cent to the country's machine tool production, 39 per cent to IT exports, 67 per cent to making aircraft and helicopters for defence services and 33 per cent to biotech exports," he said. The state is also at the forefront of next-gen technology such as block chain, additive manufacturing, 3D printing, robotics, nano-technology, medical technology and genetic engineering, he said. "We are undertaking comprehensive reforms to ensure seamless and time-bound processes for project approval, grant of statutory permissions and licenses. Our transparent policy initiatives are aimed at providing support to new industries and entrepreneurs. "We are determined to ensure our state leads in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and use the power of big data, high computing capacity, artificial intelligence and analytics to digitise manufacturing in the state," he added.

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'3 idiots' behind Ramesh Jarkiholi’s resignation, says brother Lakhan Jarkiholi

Politics

Lakhan added that he is ready to take over the reins of the Congress party in Gokak.

TNM Staff

Congress leader Lakhan Jarkiholi on Tuesday said that he will lead the party in Gokak constituency in Belagavi in the absence of his brother Ramesh Jarkiholi. He also took a swipe at Ramesh’s brothers-in-law, accusing them of ‘leading him down the wrong path.’ This comes after Ramesh confirmed on Monday that he has resigned as the MLA of Gokak constituency. "The three idiots are taking Ramesh on the wrong path. It has been one year now since this has happened and I have not been in contact with him. Appirao Patil, Ambirao Patil and Shankar Patil are misguiding Ramesh," said Lakhan. Ambirao, Appirao and Shankar are all brothers-in-law of Ramesh.  Ambirao Patil was in the news recently as he had laid the foundation stone and inaugurated several projects, including a girls hostel at the Mallapur Pattan Panchayat and the Valmiki Bhavan in Gokak, in the absence of disgruntled Ramesh.  Lakhan added that he is ready to take over the reins of the Congress party in Gokak.  "I am ready to contest from Gokak if there is an election," he added. Satish had earlier named Lakhan as the Congress party in-charge in Gokak. Lakhan had also held a meeting with members of the Gokak municipality.  Ramesh had previously stated that he would switch to the BJP and contest against his other brother, Satish Jarkiholi, from Yemkanmardi. Satish won from the constituency in the Assembly Elections in 2018. Ramesh was also seen campaigning for the BJP candidate in Chikkodi during the Lok Sabha Elections. The strength of the coalition government went down to 117 following Ramesh's resignation. Congress has 77 MLAs, the JD(S) has 37 MLAs and there is 1 BSP MLA in the Assembly. Two independent MLAs – R Shankar from Ranebennur and H Nagesh from Mulbagal constituencies – are also supporting the coalition. Meanwhile, the BJP has 105 MLAs in the Karnataka Assembly. The majority mark in the Assembly is 113.

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