The bill is being blocked by Democratic senators looking for assurances the chamber's GOP leaders will take up comprehensive legislation to address drug costs.
from Health Care https://ift.tt/2PiZJJP
via IFTTT
Body 2:
Friday, October 25, 2019
To tackle child sexual abuse, K’taka schools need compulsory personal safety education
In these classes, children over the age of three are taught the difference between safe and unsafe touch in an age and culturally appropriate manner.
Image for representation
The prevalence of child sexual abuse cases across India, including Karnataka, has made headlines multiple times. As per the 2017 Crime Records Bureau Report, 2,037 of Karnataka’s children were sexually abused in 1,308 cases in the year, and sought justice under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. 1,357 of these children were victims of rape. As of 2018, over 3,529 cases of child sexual abuse under the POCSO Act are still pending in Karnataka’s courts. In this context, it is imperative that the Karnataka government take stringent measures to neutralize this danger to children. And one way to do this is mandatory inclusion of personal safety education in the curriculum in all schools in the state, which should include, among other things, education about safe and unsafe touch. Education about safe and unsafe touch aims to empower children to, first, recognise attempted inappropriate touching, and second, to safely communicate to a trusted adult when such abuse does take place. In these classes, children over the age of three are taught the difference between safe and unsafe touch in an age and culturally appropriate manner through rhymes, models, and educational videos. One of the things they learn is that certain parts such as the neck, chest, genitals, etc. are never to be touched by strangers or even family members, unless it is by a doctor (in the presence of a trusted family member) or parents/ caretakers during a bath etc. Way forward Karnataka needs to pass a legally enforceable and mandatory measure that ensures all children from the age of three are educated on safe and unsafe touch. This inclusion of personal safety education in the curriculum must be on the same lines as education in all other subjects in terms of periodicity of teaching and qualifications of the teachers. Section 5A of the Karnataka Education Act, 1983 specifically provides that every educational institution take measures to ensure the safety and security of children. It also mentions that such measures are to include the protection of children from sexual offences. Additionally, this law empowers the state government to make rules under Section 145 (xxiv) of the Act on courses of study in educational institutions. It is recommended that the Karnataka government use these provisions to make inclusion of personal safety education in every school mandatory. To ensure that it is taught to children in an age-appropriate and sensitive manner, it is recommended that all Anganwadi workers as well as government and private school teachers are mandatorily trained on the best and most suitable ways to impart such knowledge. For the safety of Karnataka’s children and the success of this programme, it is critical that every school in Karnataka have an established protocol to deal with instances of child sexual abuse in the school. It must be made mandatory for the school principal to report any incident involving child sexual abuse to the local police station on the day that it is reported. Additionally, this ecosystem of safety for children must place their wellbeing at its heart, with teachers, parents and law enforcement authorities standing guard to protect them from sexual predators. Such a system would also be incomplete without the active involvement of the parents themselves -- first, in acknowledging that sexual abuse of their children is a very real possibility, and one that must be guarded against; and second, that more often than not, the perpetrators are those who are known to the child, perhaps even family members themselves. Parents must be educated about the concept of safe and unsafe touch themselves so that they stay vigilant and reinforce the concept at home as well. Current solutions States such as Haryana, Rajasthan, and Punjab have already undertaken programmes that raise awareness about safe and unsafe touch in schools. Government schools across India are also educating children from classes 2 to 7 about the concept of ‘Good Touch, Bad Touch’ under the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan and the Ayushman Bharat scheme. In some of Karnataka’s government schools, there is a pre-existing system where a workbook titled “Idu Nanna Deha, Nanna Icche” has been introduced to children aged between 6 to 12. It is recommended that the same be reviewed for extension to all schools across the state, whether private or government run. Akhileshwari Reddy is a Research Fellow at Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, Karnataka and has authored the entry on ‘Good Touch Bad Touch’, in the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy’s 2019 Briefing Book. Views expressed are author's own.
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/2Wf7WjS
via IFTTT
Coastal Karnataka to see heavy rains as Cyclone Kyarr forms in Arabian Sea
Meteorologists said that the cyclonic storm is expected to impact coastal and northern Karnataka.
Heavy rainfall continued in coastal parts of Karnataka on Friday after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) confirmed that the deep depression in the Arabian Sea intensified into the cyclonic storm 'Kyarr'. The storm will, however, move towards Onam coast over the next five days. "The deep depression over east/central Arabian Sea moved northwards with a speed of 5 km/hour during the last six hours and intensified into cyclonic storm 'Kyarr' and lay centred at 0530 hrs IST today, the 25th October, 2019 near latitude 16.0°N and longitude 71.3°E over eastcentral Arabian Sea, about 240 km west-southwest of Ratnagiri (Maharashtra), 380 km south-southwest of Mumbai (Maharashtra) and 1850 km east-southeast of Salalah (Oman)", a statement by the IMD said. "It is very likely to move west-northwestwards towards Oman coast during next 5 days. It is very likely to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm during next 24 hours and into a very severe cyclonic storm during subsequent 12 hours", the statement added. Meteorologists stated that the cyclonic storm is expected to impact Karnataka as it is centered in the central Arabian Sea, around 300-400 km west of the Maharashtra coast in the Arabian sea. "The cyclonic storm has moved further north from Karnataka. There will be rough seas and high wind speeds along coastal areas along with moderate to heavy rainfall", Sunil Gavaskar, a meteorologist with the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) told TNM. Widespread moderate rainfall with heavy rainfall in isolated places has been forecasted in northern Karnataka in areas close to the Maharashtra border, as per a statement by the IMD. Rainfall and thunderstorm activity is forecast in South Interior Karnataka for Friday. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is forecast in isolated places of coastal Karnataka. However, the red warning issued for the coastal districts of Karnataka has been reduced to an orange for Friday and a yellow warning for Saturday. Schools and colleges remained closed in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi on Friday following the warning issued over the cyclonic storm Kyarr. District officials in all three coastal districts have been asked to remain on high alert. Fishermen were warned not to venture out in the sea while tourists were also asked to refrain from visiting the beaches. The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) on Thursday predicted high waves in the range of 3 to 3.2 metres between Thursday and Saturday along the coast of Karnataka from Mangaluru to Karwar.
Body 2:
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/2Na9reV
via IFTTT
‘Protests instigated by outsiders with ulterior motives’: Amrita Uni on Harsha’s death
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, which had earlier said it would address the press on Friday, also called off the interaction with journalists.
Official website
Three days after the tragic death of 21-year-old Sri Harsha due to the alleged harassment by Amrita School of Engineering in Bengaluru, it’s parent organisation Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham has absolved itself from the incident. The college claimed, “We are shocked and are completely clueless about what made Sri Harsha take this extreme and thoughtless step.” Amrita Vishwa Vidyapetham, which had earlier said it would address the press on Friday, also called off the interaction with journalists. Read: ‘Amrita college is responsible for my son’s death’: Sri Harsha’s father speaks out While it has been reported how final-year student Harsha was told that he would be suspended from college if not rusticated, Amrita claimed Harsha was only called for a “routine appearance” as his name did not figure in this list of “miscreants”. However, they claimed some student in their submission during the inquiry over the alleged vandalism incident, took Harsha’s name, and he was questioned for the purpose of collecting evidence. “Students who deposed before the inquiry committee in the first round gave the names of a few more students, including that of Sri Harsha. Based on this deposition, the inquiry committee asked these students to appear along with their parents. During the next phase of the inquiry, Sri Harsha also deposed before the inquiry committee along with his father,” the statement said. Moreover, the college also called the protests started by the students following the tragedy, as “instigated” by outsiders. While Parappana Agrahara police have booked 10 people of the college including the director of the institution for abetment to suicide and disappearance of evidence, the college has not made any comment on the issue of “destruction of evidence”. Apathy and simmering anger: Events that led to Amrita college student Harsha’s death In the detailed statement, Amrita said, “In the midst of this tragedy, it is unfortunate that totally baseless information is being circulated to the mainstream and social media from some quarters about the circumstances leading to Harsha’s death. We wonder about the motives behind those who are peddling wild and unfounded stories within a few hours of the tragic demise. There seems to be the involvement of some external elements with ulterior motives in instigating the students and vitiating the calm atmosphere of the college campus.” Amrita college suicide: College shut till November 4, students forced to end protest While students have claimed that the issues of lack of sufficient water and poor quality of food have been raised from as way back as 2017 summer, Amrita stressed on the incidents of September 23 when the students allegedly broke bus windscreens and windows. The college claimed, “On September 23, water supply to one of the main hostels was obstructed due to disruption of power supply in the whole belt. However, water was available in other adjacent hostel blocks and students were able to access the same. Water supply was fully restored within a day. However, in the meanwhile, some miscreants among students took this opportunity to agitate and destroy properties of the institution such as buses, canteen, electrical systems, etc. causing widespread damage.” Amrita also claimed that several baseless charges against Amrita management and staff have been circulated over the past few days. “The charges include the tearing up of Harsha’s non-existent placement offer, harassment of students by the management, insensitivity towards student welfare, exorbitant hostel fees, disrespect for parents of students, etc. none of which are true and have no basis,” it said.
Body 2:
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/2qLLPFZ
via IFTTT
Karnataka serial killer Cyanide Mohan sentenced to death in 4th rape and murder case
Cyanide Mohan was sentenced to death in three other rape and murder cases. However, the Karnataka High Court overturned death penalty in two of these cases.
Serial rapist and murderer Cyanide Mohan was sentenced to death in one of the rape and murder cases against him by a Mangaluru court on Thursday. The VI Additional District Sessions court was hearing the case of the rape and murder of an anganwadi worker. On Tuesday, sessions judge Syedunnisa convicted Mohan of rape and murder and sentenced him to death. Mohan killed the anganwadi worker from Balepuni village in Dakshina Kannada district’s Bantwal taluk in October 2005. According to The Hindu, the death sentence will be executed only after the Karnataka High Court confirms it. The rape and murder at Balepuni was the 17th case being heard against Cyanide Mohan and the Karnataka High Court had overturned death penalty in two previous convictions. It had reduced the sentence to life imprisonment and five years of rigorous imprisonment. However, in one case, the High court confirmed the death sentence. Three other rape and murder cases he was booked for are currently under trial. The death sentence was awarded for the murder charge and sessions judge also allotted 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 the charge of abduction. Mohan was also sentenced to seven years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5,000 for the rape conviction. The judge also ordered the Karnataka government to compensate the victim’s younger sister through the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Deccan Herald reported. Cyanide Mohan is currently serving his sentence at the Hindalga Central Prison in Karnataka’s Belagavi. He was on video conference when the sentence was pronounced, the Hindu report added. The victim was cremated and an unnatural death report was filed when her body was found in 2005. The case, was linked to Mohan after his arrest in September 2009. After ‘Cyanide’ Mohan’s arrest, police suspected that he was involved in at least 32 murders. All of his victims were women and he killed them by giving them pills laced with cyanide. Mohan would promise marriage, rape them, take them to the nearest bus stand where he would ask them to take a birth control pill. The pill was laced with cyanide. The women went to the restrooms to take the pill as he had told them it would make them sick.
Body 2:
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/2JkqfPl
via IFTTT
How to fight drought and build livelihoods: This Karnataka lake offers a blueprint
The Hunassina Lake in Hassan may serve as a model for Bengaluru or Chennai on how to restore lakes, and build and sustain an economy around it.
Two men tug water hyacinth out of Hunasina Lake in Hassan, Karnataka.
Three men paddled out into Hunasina Lake on a recent September afternoon in Hassan, Karnataka, all of them nestled like eggs in a raft that looked like an upturned umbrella, wobbling as though it wasn’t quite sure it could carry the load. They stopped as the raft began to bob against a wall of water hyacinth, a weed that spreads over lake surfaces in much of south India, feeding on sewage that seeps into the water. One man lassoed a chunk of weeds with a rope that was tied to the digging arm of a huge orange construction vehicle on the opposite bank. Once the knot was pulled tight, the man operating the machine swung its arm, tugging a tuft of weeds across the lake like a tube tied to the back of a boat. Hunasina Lake covers about 215 acres around Hassan. It’s wide enough that catching sight of the opposite shore might require some squinting, but its surface is dominated by weeds where there should be water. Purple moorhens flit and splash in small gray pools not yet consumed by the hyacinth, and though people do fish there, in many respects Hunasina Lake is a lake in name only. SS Pasha stood on its shore that day and talked about how the Hasiru Bhoomi Trust, of which he is a past president, is hoping to change that within a year. Pasha wears glasses with frames that are hardly visible, perched on a face framed by a white beard. He’s lived in Hassan all his life, and the Hasiru Bhoomi Trust — started in 2017 — is a local organisation that’s restoring the city’s water bodies not just so the water is clean enough for washing clothes, but so the area’s lakes can provide extra food and cash to nearby poorer communities in need of both. Restoring lakes (also called tanks) with an eye toward filling wallets and bellies could be crucial in helping people across south India build livelihoods in a region where drought is already common and is likely to become moreso. It’s worked before, from around 850-1280 CE, when the Chola Kingdom spread across south India by carving out local tanks to help people provide for themselves during a time when rainfall was either torrential or absent, in a way not so different from now. Hunasina Lake's 215 acres can look almost pristine in places, though much of it is covered in weeds. Tanks in south India are full of sediment and surrounded by animals and plants, all of which can be turned into “additional income,” according to the authors of a paper on how the Chola used manmade lakes to weather changes in climate, which was published in a 2017 edition of The Anthropocene Review. People make pots from the silt, catch fish to eat or sell, and forage for fruit. Restoring those lakes, wrote the authors, can provide “environmental capital suited to sustaining long-term agricultural and societal resilience.” Much of the Chola’s terrain was rural, but their use of lakes may serve as a model for modern cities as large as Bengaluru or Chennai, both of which are already buckling under the twin pressures of drought and booming population. Revitalising lakes could provide a way for struggling families to build a life in these places even as rainfall becomes more erratic. But that would mean thinking of lakes as more than a natural respite for people who spend their weekdays tapping at laptops in office buildings. The life of water Some of what a lake can provide is obvious: water to bathe in, water in which to wash clothes, and fish caught to eat or sell. “If you go to all these lakes, you’ll see fish being sold on the roadside,” said Harini Nagendra, a sustainability professor at Azim Premji University who explores the intersection of cities and nature. “Not everyone is going to go buy fish that is neatly packaged from a mall.” But it’s what surrounds the lake that shows just how many ways people can use a body of water. Fruit and nut-bearing trees can be plucked to eat or sell, and nuts can be turned into oils. Some of the trees can be chopped down and sold as firewood, and fibrous weeds can be pulled from the water and woven into slippers. Potters use silt from the bottom of healthy lakes to mold pots or idols to sell around holidays and festivals. Herders can graze their cattle on the grass that grows along the water’s edge. At Bellandur Lake in Bengaluru, people also collect grasses to sell as fodder to nearby zoos, according to Hita Unnikrishnan, an expert in urban ecology at the University of Sheffield who studies the sociology and ecology of Bengaluru’s lakes. Migrants coming to Bengaluru may find daily wage work in other peoples’ homes or get jobs cleaning up facilities within IT parks, but they often need something else to get by. “A lot of that is sustained by the lakes,” Hita said. Depriving communities of the lakes around them hurts women in particular, according to Harini and Hita. Women can use the surrounding trees for some privacy when they need it, and because grazing is traditionally a man’s job while women feed cattle kept in stalls, if there is no land on which to graze, that means more work for women. Three men paddle into Hunasina Lake to tie rope to water hyacinth before it's yanked from the water. A quick Facebook search is all anyone needs to see that there are plenty of lake restoration efforts across south Indian cities, but the goals of these groups can differ from the hopes of people who might need the lakes simply to survive. One of the first things that happens during an urban lake restoration effort, according to Hita, is time restrictions that block anyone from being around the water in the middle of the day or after dark, catering to people who take morning or evening strolls before or after their commutes. “You’re creating a restrictive atmosphere for anyone who wants to use the lake for something that is not walking or jogging,” she said. Opening up these water bodies to more than recreation would involve a fight against the balance of power. Middle and upper class urbanites will almost always have more political weight than poorer communities, and anti-commercialisation laws meant to stop businesses from setting up shop along the water also stop people from making a bit of cash by selling, for example, fresh mango juice to walkers who might like some. Governments and businesses could solve some of this by generating demand for lake-related products. Officials could give out fishing licenses to communities of fishermen who already live around these tanks, or, as Harini suggested, companies such as Fabindia could sell mats woven from the fibers of lake reeds. Officials should also involve communities that live around the lake in the process of revitalising it, Hita said. If they did, lake development in Bengaluru, Chennai, and other south Indian cities might look a lot like what’s happening in and around Hassan. Past and future economies The Hasiru Bhoomi Trust is not a part of the government, but in Hassan they’ve stepped into a governing sort of role, though they only have 27 members. According to Venkatesh Murthy, who runs a local newspaper and is one of those 27, they have brought small tanks back to life around the city by going to nearby communities again and again, asking them to organise around restoration. “We told them to believe in this, not to believe in bore wells,” Pasha said. Water hyacinth spreads out across much of the surface of Hunasina Lake. He and other group members sat in an SUV on that same day in September as the road curved past the first lake they’d targeted, a three-acre tank only a short drive from the heart of Hassan that was dry and choked with weeds when they began. He pointed to the open-air convention hall nearby, where they’d had a bunch of meetings with 100-150 people before anyone even touched the lake. Now, right next door, construction workers are building a community center with the money others have made from farming and fishing. The Hasiru Bhoomi Trust estimates that around 5,000 fish -- mostly common carp -- live in the lake, and on its banks grow coconut, jackfruit and jamun trees. People grow rice, potatoes and maize, according to Pasha, and the water is clean enough to drink. Children can splash around without their parents worrying about what the water might to do their bodies. At Hunasina Lake, the 215-acre body of water that the group says will be clear of hyacinth in a year, Pasha is thinking of boosting a much larger economy. The group wants to build islands out on the lake, providing habitat for migratory birds that Pasha thinks could start something of a tourism industry in Hassan. Once the weeds are ripped out, the lake will be wide enough for tourists to row boats along its placid surface. They’ll have to work with the government for all this to happen, because it’s way too much for volunteers, but doing so could set a blueprint for how cities can fight drought and build their economies at the same time, a renewed use of knowledge that the Chola implemented across south India some 1000 years before. Colin Daileda is a freelance journalist in Bengaluru who has written about climate change for Thomson Reuters, and on other subjects for The Atlantic, Roads and Kingdoms, Mashable, and others. All photos by Colin Daileda.
Body 2:
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/2WdtjSl
via IFTTT
Amrita college suicide: College shut till November 4, students forced to end protest
In an emotionally charged meeting with the management, students put forward many demands. But not much progress was made.
Late on Thursday night, dejected students of Amrita School of Engineering in Bengaluru rolled up posters and put down the placards they had held as they sat in protest demanding justice for the death of a fellow student – Sri Harsha. Harsha had killed himself in the campus on Monday after walking out of an inquiry conducted by the college’s 10-member disciplinary committee. Students began protesting soon after Harsha’s death and demanded that members of the disciplinary committee be removed immediately. After four days of protests, the Dean of Engineering, Amrita University – Dr Sasangan Ramanathan, and two other members of the college’s management arrived in Bengaluru to conduct talks with the students. Student representatives told TNM that the talks were inconclusive and they were informed that the college would be shut till November 4. Those living in hostels were asked to leave. Sri Harsha was accused of vandalizing a CCTV camera on the night of September 23, when protests broke out in the campus. Students, who were angered by Director Dhanaraj Swamy’s alleged apathy towards their demands for their basic right to food and water, had vandalized seven buses, a window of a provision shop and one CCTV camera. What happened inside the disciplinary committee meeting on October 21 On October 21, Sri Harsha was called in for inquiry the second time. The disciplinary committee reportedly had screenshot of a picture Harsha had allegedly put up on Snapchat. “When the vandalism occurred, Harsha had taken a picture of the CCTV camera and had put it up on Snapchat. The committee learnt of this somehow and that’s why he was called for an inquiry. He told the committee that another student had informed him the name of the person who had vandalized the camera. Harsha strongly denied damaging college property,” one of the students, who was present at the inquiry on October 21 with Harsha told TNM. The student says that the faculty members threatened to stop Harsha from attending placements and also suspend him for a year if he did not reveal the name of the person who vandalised the camera. “There were so many rumors and so many names were being taken. Harsha had informed them that I had spoken to them about one such rumor. But the management wanted me to give the person's name in writing. They threatened to rusticate me and I was forced to name the student we had heard rumors about. Though I was not sure of it," the student added. It is after this meeting that Harsha killed himself even as his father was waiting at the college's gate for him. Protests erupted soon after and students demanded that the Chancellor Amritanandamayi address the issue personally. What happened in the negotiation meeting Hopeful that their demands would be met, 10 student representatives met faculty members of the Bengaluru campus and the three-member management team at around 7.30 pm on Thursday. Emotions ran high after the meeting was over as dejected student representatives walked out with tears in their eyes. The students’ primary demand was the removal of members of the disciplinary committee. This was allegedly met with stiff resistance from the college management. “We told them that students feel threatened to walk into a class room and know that those faculty members would target them for speaking up. But the Dean told us that he cannot infringe on employee rights and that no action could be taken against the DISCO until they are proven guilty. We tried to negotiate by saying that the 10 accused must not be allowed inside the campus until the investigation is over but the management did not agree to that either,” one of the students, who attended the meeting told TNM. Another demand was for a new disciplinary committee with students representatives and a counsellor to ensure that the committee does not mentally harass students. Students also demanded that the minutes of the discipinary committee meeting be recorded in addition to video-taping each meeting. They also demanded that these minutes and videos must be made accessible to students in question and their parents or guardians on request. “They did not agree to this either. When we read out our demands, our last demand was that good quality food be provided and that those living in hostels must get 24 hour water supply. They agreed to give us proper food and water and also to form a student body and a committee with four student representatives to decide the new menu for the mess. Apart from this, nothing much was agreed on," another student, who was present at the meeting said. The Dean Sasangan Ramanathan addressed the protesting students after the meeting and informed them that the college would be shut until November 4. "We are calling off the protest until November 4. If any of the accused enter college when we come back, we will protest again,” the student said. By 11 pm, the protestors had dispersed. The Mathura Block, where students had protested for four days was finally empty. “We all shed tears. We are all very emotional right now. We feel helpless and hopeless. What is the guarantee that anything will change? We will keep fighting,” the student added.
Body 2:
from Karnataka https://ift.tt/33UTM9Y
via IFTTT
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)