High-security alert at Bengaluru airport ahead of I-Day, leave early to avoid delays

Security

With the alert in place, frisking of passengers and luggage checking has been intensified by the security personnel.

TNM Staff

PTI/Representational Image

The Kempegowda International Airport for Bengaluru city has been put under a high-security alert with Independence Day less than two weeks away. This might mean that security screening for those boarding national and international flights might take more time than usual. “The high-security alert at the #BLRAirport might result in some additional wait time, queues and delays. Passenger security is our first priority. Please plan your travel accordingly. Apologies for any inconveniences,” Bangalore International Airport Limited, the operator of the airport tweeted on Friday. With this, frisking of passengers and luggage checking has been intensified by the Central Industrial Security Force, said media reports. Reports said that while the heightened alert ahead of Independence Day is routine, the enhanced security measures assume added significance in view of the deadly Pulwama terror attack following which a nationwide alert was issued.   Kempegowda International Airport is currently the busiest airport in south India and the third largest in the country behind the airports in Delhi and Mumbai. The airport saw a footfall of 33.3 million passengers in 2017-18. Security has been beefed up at Bengaluru’s major railway stations.  New Indian Express quoted one railway police official as saying, “It is a regular practice that a fortnight before important occasions like Independence Day or Republic Day vigil is intensified. We have not received any specific alert notice.” The Kempegowda International Airport for Bengaluru city has been put under a high-security alert with Independence Day less than two weeks away. This might mean that security screening for those boarding national and international flights might take more time than usual. “The high-security alert at the #BLRAirport might result in some additional wait time, queues and delays. Passenger security is our first priority. Please plan your travel accordingly. Apologies for any inconveniences,” Bangalore International Airport Limited, the operator of the airport tweeted on Friday. With this, frisking of passengers and luggage checking has been intensified by the Central Industrial Security Force, said media reports. Reports said that while the heightened alert ahead of Independence Day is routine, the enhanced security measures assume added significance in view of the deadly Pulwama terror attack following which a nationwide alert was issued.   Kempegowda International Airport is currently the busiest airport in south India and the third largest in the country behind the airports in Delhi and Mumbai. The airport saw a footfall of 33.3 million passengers in 2017-18. Security has been beefed up at Bengaluru’s major railway stations.  New Indian Express quoted one railway police official as saying, “It is a regular practice that a fortnight before important occasions like Independence Day or Republic Day vigil is intensified. We have not received any specific alert notice.” 

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‘Save Every Drop’ campaign launched in association with Astral Pipes at B’luru fest

Water Conservation

The year-long campaign aims to create awareness about the ongoing water crisis and encourage necessary actions to address this issue.

TNM Staff

Image for representation

With an objective of highlighting the ongoing water crisis, a campaign called “Save Every Drop” was launched on Friday at the 6th Edition of Nature InFocus Festival in collaboration with Astral Pipes, one of India’s leading plumbing and drainage systems manufacturers. The year-long campaign aims to create awareness about the ongoing water crisis and encourage necessary actions to address this issue. The Nature InFocus Festival is being held from August 2-4, 2019 at Chamara Vajra, Bengaluru. Three key ideas of the "Save Every Drop" campaign are- Recognition of individuals and organisations working on water conservation and providing innovative solutions. Increasing awareness among the general public, using compelling social media posts created by eminent artists and illustrators. A year-long contest inviting ideas on effective water conservation. The best idea will be recognised and funded by Astral Pipes at the end of the campaign. With a mission to go beyond water management solutions, Astral Pipes supplies drinking water and sanitation facilities in remote villages. The “Save Every Drop” campaign is part of their larger goal to contribute to the social development of the society they operate in. Speaking about the campaign, Sandeep Engineer, Managing Director, Astral Pipes said, “Today, India is facing a grave challenge of water scarcity, and Astral Pipes understands the need to work on this issue on an urgent basis. Through this campaign, we are showing our commitment to create awareness about this crisis and encourage conservation measures.” The Nature inFocus digital platform and the annual festival draws a crowd of like-minded people interested in understanding the natural world and the pressing issues of our planet.  Rohit Varma, co-founder of Nature inFocus said, “The water crisis is a pressing issue, but what we need now is to go beyond awareness and act on it. Through this campaign we hope people will find ways to do their bit, before it's too late.” Currently, about 600 million people in India face acute water shortage, and rural areas are severely affected by the lack of clean water supply. This is India’s worst water crisis in history, but the future looks equally grim, if not more. A total of 21 cities are predicted to run out of groundwater by 2020. With 80% of the water supply being used in agriculture, this water crisis will have a significant impact on food security as well.

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Bhaskar Rao appointed Bengaluru Police Commissioner, Alok Kumar transferred

Administration

Bhaskar Rao has been the Commissioner of Transport and Road Safety and the Director of the KSRTC in the past.

TNM Staff

In another reshuffle in IPS ranks in Karnataka, Alok Kumar has been transferred out as the top cop in Bengaluru and 1990-batch officer Bhaskar Rao has been appointed the Police Commissioner. He was serving as the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Karnataka State Reserve Police. He has been accorded the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service in 2017 and the President’s Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 2008.  He was also accorded the United nation’s Medal for the Services rendered in International Peacekeeping in a warzone (Kosovo, Yugoslavia) in 2000. Before his posting in Reserve Police, he was ADGP Crimes, Technical Services, Forensic lab, ADGP Canine squad, he ADGP Directorate Civil Rights Enforcement and Mysuru Police Commissioner among other .  His other postings include the Commissioner of Transport and Road Safety and the Director of the Karanataka State Transport Corporation. Rao is a known advocate of public and non-motorised transport and is a known cycling enthusiast. Alok Kumar who was only appointed as the Bengaluru Police Commissioner in mid-June only has been shifted to the State Reserve Police in a like-for-like transfer.  Friday’s transfer orders come after more than 10 changes were made in the state’s IPS hierarchy made on Thursday. The changes include the transfer of two top police officers probing the death of coffee czar and Coffee Day Enterprise founder VG Siddhartha.  Other major reshuffles include: Amar Kumar Pandey, previously ADGP, Karnataka State Human Rights Commission, who has now been posted as the ADGP, Law and Order. Existing ADGP, Law and Order, Kamal Pant is the new chief of State Intelligence. Pant will replace B Dayanand, who will now be posted as the chief of the State Reserve Police. Transfers of this scale are common with a new government taking shape. BS Yediyurappa took oath as the Chief Minister for the fourth time last month..

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K’taka Forest Dept asks govt to give pay hike for staff in line with police officials

Administration

The call for an increase in pay for the lower rung forest staff has also resulted in an online petition which has seen close to 6000 signatures in a week.

Soumya Chatterjee

The top brass of the Karnataka Forest Department has approached the state government to increase the pay of mid and lower-ranked forest staff in the state who have threatened to go on strike. Hundreds of (non-IFS) forest department officials below the rank of RFOs (Range Forest Officer) in Karnataka are threatening to go on leave en masse demanding a pay hike similar to what was given to the police department recently. The call for an increase in pay for the lower rung forest staff has also got support from wildlife enthusiasts. An online petition for the cause has seen close to 6,000 people supporting it within a week.  Speaking to TNM, Chief of Staff and Head of the Forest Department, Sridhar Punnati said, “We have taken up the matter with the government. We are for pay parity of forest staff compared to the police department. We have requested Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) to hold a meeting regarding this.”   A mid-rank forest official said, “There are around 8,000 forest staff across the state who will go for a strike if the situation does not improve. These include staff starting from forest watchers, forest guards to deputy range officers. In the case of the foresters, the pay that a DRFO (deputy range forest officer) is getting is equal to a constable whereas in rank and responsibility they are equal to police sub-inspector. This lack of parity has hurt them very much. That is why they are pressurising PCCF (Principal Chief Conservator of Forests) and the government to make an equivalent post and pay to that of sub-inspector.”  The state government on June 16 during the last Kumaraswamy regime had approved an increase of 12.5% in the salaries of police staff below the rank of sub-inspector.  “We have already acted on their request. Especially the Deputy Range Officers had given a request which we had already sent to the government long back. And in the previous government, then Forest Minister Satish Jarkiholi had a meeting with the Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) in this regard. In that meeting, it was decided that the cabinet sub-committee will hold a meeting for this purpose and take a decision. Even Additional Chief Secretary (Forest) had written to ACS (Finance) to convene a meeting for the same,” a top source in the department told TNM.

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Major IPS reshuffle in Karnataka: Top cops probing VG Siddhartha death transferred

Administration

Both Commissioner of Police, Mangaluru, Sandeep Patil, and DCP, Law and Order, Mangaluru, Hanumantharaya, have been transferred.

TNM Staff

Two top police officers in Karnataka probing the death of coffee czar and Coffee Day Enterprise founder VG Siddhartha have been transferred out of their existing positions. Commissioner of Police, Mangaluru, Sandeep Patil, and DCP, Law and Order, Mangaluru, Hanumantharaya, have been transferred as part of a major reshuffle in the IPS ranks in the state. Transfers of this scale are common with a new government taking shape, with BS Yeddyurappa taking oath as the CM for the fourth time earlier in the week. In his previous two-day stint in May 2018, he affected three transfers in the state’s IPS ranks within hours of taking oath. Patil has been now posted as the Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime), Bengaluru City, while Hanumantharaya has been posted as the Superintendent of Police in Davanagere. A Subramanyeswara Rao, who was the DIG Intelligence, has been made the new Commissioner of Police, Mangaluru. Incidentally, the chief of the Special Investigation Team probing the multi-crore IMA scam, BR Ravikanthe Gowda, has been transferred without any posting. Other major reshuffles include Amar Kumar Pandey, previously ADGP, Karnataka State Human Rights Commission, who has now been posted as the ADGP, Law and Order. Existing ADGP, Law and Order, Kamal Pant is the new chief of State Intelligence. Pant will replace B Dayanand, who will now be posted as the chief of the State Reserve Police. Chetan Singh Rathor, who was the SP of Ramanagara, is now the new DCP Police, Central Division, Bengaluru City, replacing D Devaraja, who has been transferred out without any posting. DCP (Intelligence), Bengaluru KM Shantharaju has also been transferred and made the new SP of Shivamogga. Apart from the IPS transfers, CM BS Yeddyurappa also appointed Commissioner for Transport & Road Safety, VP Ikkeri, as Additional Secretary to the Chief Minister, Chief Minister Secretariat, Bengaluru in a newly created post. However, Ikkeri will continue to serve in his existing position as well. 

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Bengaluru metro card glitch: Users recharging online say amount not credited

Transport

Bengaluru metro officials, however, said the problem is a minor one and would be fixed shortly.

TNM Staff

In a major glitch, commuters of the metro rail in Bengaluru complained that the amount was not being credited when they recharged their smartcard using the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited website.   Same here, I too did recharge on https://t.co/Mi6GDWCCIE, but didn't reflect on the smart card. Now struggling with it. No one accepts complaints or get any response. #NammaMetro So much for state of the art, when system don't work why enable it? — Suraj KV (@smartfatblogger) August 1, 2019   #BMRCL #NAMMAMETRO online recharged amount is not reflecting on card account due to server down issue and this has been 30+ hours from the time of recharge. Please have this addressed on PRIORITY PLEASE. — Vinutha (@minchuvinutha) July 30, 2019   @cpronammametro I did online recharge of Metro Card on July 15th with the amount 1000 & 500. Both transactions are not being reflected in my account. Complaint no 9920 raised at JP Nagar metro station. What can be done to resolve the issue? — Amit Yadava (@amityadava) July 18, 2019   Smartcard ensures users do not have to wait in the queues while using the metro or worry about having the exact change. But officials of the metro corporation claim that the problem is a minor one and will be fixes shortly. “The issue will be resolved soon. Many users also raised concerns about limited recharge options. They either have to visit the station counters or use the web top-up facility to recharge their smartcards," a metro official told The Times of India. This glitch continues as BMRCL and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation will soon introduce an interoperable smart card that would work for both modes of public transport.  The new cards will work both at the metro automatic fare collection gates and also the handheld ticketing machines used by BMTC conductors. In an unpopular move in March, metro officials said commuters now need to have a minimum balance of Rs 50 on their cards from a minimum balance that was earlier at Rs 8.50.

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Karnataka CM Yediyurappa promises to build 2 lakh houses for poor in Bengaluru

Housing

Yediyurappa said the state government has identified 1000 acres of land for the housing project.

TNM Staff

PTI/File

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa has promised that the state government will build 2,000 houses for the poor in Bengaluru. The state government has also identified land for the project. “It is the Prime Minister's wish…In the next three to four years everyone should have a house. In this regard, we have decided to build 10 to 12 storey buildings in Bengaluru,” Yediyurappa toldreporters after holding a meeting with finance department officials. "After a week, I will inspect two to three spots. This year we have set a target of two lakh houses. To complete this, we have identified 1,000 acres of land," Yediyurappa added. He said this scheme will have housing with necessary facilities like lift and will be in accordance to projects that have been done in Gujarat and other states of the country. This comes as the state government under former CM HD Kumaraswamy had announced that 1 lakh houses would be built for poor in November, 2018. At that time, the state government had announced 14-storey houses will be built for the purpose.  At that time, then Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, said, “With lack of availability of land and possible constraint on resources, the cabinet has resolved to increase the number of floors under the housing scheme to 14 instead of the previous three floors.” Thursday’s meeting was also centred around the Prime Minister's Kisan Samman Yojana and other big ticket schemes of the government. “I have discussed the state's financial status and revenue collections which are at a satisfactory level. I have also discussed the issuance of a government order to give effect to the Debt Relief Act,” the CM said in this regard. Yediyurappa said that the government will formulate an implementation plan for the Debt Relief Act which recently got the President’s assent and Kumaraswamy termed it as his “parting gift”.

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