Mysuru’s iconic Southern Star hotel shuts down after suffering losses during lockdown

Coronavirus

In a letter posted on the hotel’s notice board, the management said that business had come to a standstill.

TNM Staff

Southern Star Hotels website

One of the most iconic hotels in Mysuru, the Southern Star, which has operated in the city for around 40 years, shut down operations on Tuesday due to the losses it suffered in the wake of the ongoing lockdown. The hotel has hosted superstar Rajinikanth and Bollywood actors Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai during their visits to Mysuru and was the preferred hotel for corporate events and literature fests in the city, TOI reported.  In a letter to its employees, the General Manager of Southern Star said that the hotel’s management decided to shut down as it would be difficult to operate even after the lockdown is lifted. The letter was posted on the notice board at the hotel.  “Under the circumstances, the management has decided to close down the hotel by terminating all its employees,” the letter stated.  The company terminated around 81 employees, stating that business had come to a standstill during the lockdown.  “Business/commercial activities/industries have come to a standstill. In particular, hotels have been affected badly and the situation will continue indefinitely, even after the lockdown is lifted. This is because, according to the WHO (World Health Organisation), the pandemic may take a long time to eradicate and tourists, both local and foreign may not want to risk their health,” the General Manager’s letter to the employees said.  “The entire hospitality industry has been hit hard due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We had a lot of expenditure on paying employees, ensuring they get their perks, and also managing the hotel during the lockdown. We do not expect hotels to start operating until November this year and it is not possible to continue till then,” Naresh Kumar, General Manager of Southern Star told TNM.  Naresh Kumar stated that all employees will be duly compensated for their work and that there was no need for employees to worry. “We have already sent letters to the employees that termination compensation will be paid. We will ensure that everyone gets what they have to,” he added.  He further said that there is no plan to reopen the hotel even after November as of now. “It is not going to be possible to recover from this situation even after November and there are no such plans as of now,” he said.  Located along Vinobha Road in Mysuru, Southern Star’s income was driven by travellers both domestic and international. There are 22 star hotels, 405 lodges, 180 vegetarian restaurants, 130 non-vegetarian restaurants, 300 bakeries and 45 sweet stalls in Mysuru city and employ around 25,000 people who face a similar threat of shutting down due to lack of income, according to a report by Deccan Herald.   

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Railways give Channapatna toys to children on Shramik trains from Bengaluru

Human Interest

The Railways said the Bengaluru Division has undertaken “Put the Smile Back” initiative to make the journey of children of migrant labourers enjoyable and memorable.

TNM Staff

The Bengaluru division of South Western Railway on Tuesday distributed 700 Channapatna toys to children of migrant workers who left Bengaluru by Shramik special trains. More than 50 children who travelled in Shramik Special on Monday were also given these toys. These toys were distributed under the “Put the Smile Back” initiative launched by Ashok Kumar Verma, Divisional Railway Manager, Bengaluru Division. The Railways said the Bengaluru Division has undertaken “Put the Smile Back” initiative under Verma to make the journey of children of migrant labourers enjoyable and memorable.  A press release issued by the South Western Railways said Jain Creative Impression—-Kids Toy Store and other agencies have sponsored this initiative and joined hands with Railways in making the train journey of migrant labourers and their families happy and memorable during COVID-19 crisis. Channapatna toys are GI (geographical indications, approved by the government) tagged and quite famous among children. These toys are safe and good for children as they are made of wood and natural colours. The initiative also supports local art and craft of Karnataka and encourages business of local artisans and artists. Meanwhile, all passengers, other than those travelling to Madhya Pradesh, were made to pay around Rs 1,000 to reach their destinations to the state government, who in turn paid the Railways. On Tuesday, the South Western Railway (SWR) zone operated nine special trains to ferry 13,119 migrants back home to seven north and east Indian states. \With the second train, the Bengaluru Division itself crossed the milestone of ferrying 1 lakh passengers by Shramik specials. Earlier the SWR had said that over a lakh passengers had already left the state in these trains from across Karnataka.  A train scheduled to leave for Jalpaiguri in West Bengal was cancelled due to Cyclone Amphan. The special trains are being run following the Ministry of Home Affairs' permission for the movement of stranded migrant labourers, workers, students, tourists and others. Around two weeks ago, the Karnataka government had received scathing criticism from activists and opposition for creating a “hostage situation” for these workers by stopping these trains and asking them to go back to work. (With IANS inputs)

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New waste system, masks mandatory: Karnataka issues guidelines for barbers, salons

Coronavirus

The shops or salons should provide sanitisers at the entrance for customers to wash their hands before and after hair cutting or shaving by the barber or his staff.

IANS

Karnataka on Tuesday issued an advisory for reopening barber shops/salons in the state from Wednesday after keeping them shut for 57 days due to lockdown that was extended thrice till May 31 to contain the coronavirus spread. "In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, all barber shops, hair cutting salons and parlours should follow the latest guidelines of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs when reopening for business from Wednesday across the state except in containment zones," a Health Department official said. As per the standard operating procedure (SOP), customers with fever, cold, cough and throat pain should not be allowed to enter the shop, and both customers and staff must wear masks, said the official. The shops or salons should provide sanitisers at the entrance for customers to wash their hands before and after hair cutting or shaving by the barber or his staff. The barber and his staff should wear face mask, head cover and apron at all times compulsorily, and disposable towel/paper sheet shall be used for each client. All equipment shall be sanitised after each use on a client using 7 per cent Lysol for 30 minutes, and staff should sanitise their hands after every haircut. It was also advised that appointments or token system be adopted to stagger clients entry, adequate spacing (at least 1 metre) shall be maintained for seating, and all common areas, floors, lifts, lounge/area, staircase, and handrails must be disinfected with 1 per cent sodium hypochlorite solution twice daily. Carpets and floor area shall be cleaned frequently. Sharp waste, including blades and disposable razors, should be collected in puncture proof, leak proof white containers with 1 per cent sodium hypochlorite solution. The container, once three-fourth full, should be handed over to biomedical waste disposal agency. Ths salons/shops should display posters at their entrance about cough etiquette and social distancing. The barbers and their staff should visit the state government's dedicated portal -- https://ift.tt/3g8YgRd for more details. As part of the Rs 1,610-crore relief package to the Covid-affected sections of society, Chief Minister B.S.Yediyurappa on May 6 announced Rs 5,000 each for 2,30,000 barbers registered with the state government as a one-time compensation for suffering huge loss due to closure of their shops during the prolonged lockdown.

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Karnataka SSLC exam to be held from June 25 to July 3: Full schedule

Education

Prior to entering the exam hall, all staff and students will be scanned for temperature by Health Department officials.

TNM Staff

The Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board (KSEEB) has released the exam timetable for Class 10  SSLC students in the state. As per the schedule, the examinations will begin on June 25 and end on July 3. Examinations were earlier scheduled to take place between March 27 and April 9. However, they had to be postponed due to the lockdown imposed over the outbreak of coronavirus in India. As earlier announced by the Karnataka government, there will be a day’s gap between the English, Mathematics, Science and Social Science exams. The Education Department has said that this was done as requested by the students themselves. In light of COVID-19 pandemic, the government said that hand sanitisers will be provided to all exam halls and all parts of the classroom will be sanitised on a daily basis. Prior to entering the exam hall, all staff and students will be scanned for temperature by Health Department officials. The schedule of the examination is as follows: 25 June Second language: English, Kannada 26 June Elements of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Engineering Graphics Elements of Electronics Engineering Elements of Computer Science Arthashastra 27 June Mathematics, Social Studies 29 June Science State Science Karnataka music, Hindustani music 1 July Social Science 2 July First language Kannada, Telugu, Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, English, Sanskrit 3 July Third language: Hindi, Kannada, Eng, Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Sanskrit, Konkani, Tulu 3 July National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) examination Information technology, Retail, Automobile, Healthcare, Beauty and Wellness  

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Karnataka Congress to hold ‘symbolic protest' over amending of APMC Act, other issues

Politics

The protest will be held at 11 am tomorrow (Wednesday) in front of Gandhi statue at the premises of Vidhana Soudha, Siddaramaiah's office said in a statement.

PTI

Karnataka Congress will hold a "symbolic protest" against the BJP government on Wednesday against amending of the APMC Act, proposed nominations to gram panchayats by postponing elections and plans to amend labour laws, among other issues. The decision to hold the protest was arrived at the Congress Legislature Party meeting, chaired by CLP and opposition leader Siddaramaiah. The protest will be held at 11 am tomorrow (Wednesday) in front of Gandhi statue at the premises of Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the state secretariat and legislature in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah's office said in a statement. The meeting decided to petition the Governor and the State Election Commission in this regard in the days to come and fix appointments with them for the same. It was also decided to hold protests against the "wrong decisions" of the state and central government, with regard to handling of the COVID-19 crisis, at district and taluk level. Siddaramaiah, in his remarks at the CLP meeting, hit out at both the central and state governments over their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the financial packages announced. He asked party legislators to explain to the people, the "failures" of the government. Alleging that there was a conspiracy to nominate BJP workers as members to panchayats without holding elections because of COVID-19, the former Chief Minister said Congress should urge the government to continue with the current members and hold elections after six months. "There is "Tughlaq Darbar" in the state, there is corruption. Modi had criticised our government (Congress) as 10 per cent government. He should now say Yediyurappa government is what per cent," Siddaramaiah said. Congress will stage protests against amendments to the APMC Act, labour laws and nominations to panchayats, he added. Despite objections from opposition parties, the government recently came out with an ordinance that amended the laws to curtail the powers of the Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMC). While the government said it was aimed at bringing in reforms to facilitate market access for farmers, opposition parties have vehemently opposed it, alleging that it would dilute the APMC laws and affect farmers' interests. Also, the government is reportedly mulling over an ordinance relaxing labour laws in line with other BJP ruled states, like extension in work hours, among other things.

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Search intensifies for leopard that killed 2 people in Karnataka

Wildlife

Meanwhile, a tiger which had killed many domesticated animals in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve area was captured.

TNM Staff

The Karnataka Forest Department will have to continue its search on Wednesday for a leopard suspected to have carried away and killed a sleeping boy and an old woman in the state's Ramanagara district recently. Sadashiv N Hegade, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Ramanagara confirmed that active search operations will resume post dawn. On May 9, a leopard took advantage of a door left ajar in a house in Kadirana Palya village of Magadi taluk, carrying away three-and-a-half-year-old Hemanth Kumar, who was sleeping with his parents and grandparents. In a similar fashion, on Saturday morning, 67-year-old Gangamma, sleeping outside her home in Kotteganahalli village, was also killed by a leopard. "The leopard took away the woman around 4 am," said Hegade. Following the two deaths, the department set up a camp to undertake round the clock vigil in the terrorised villages to capture the leopards. "We have arranged 13 cages with baits such as goats and dogs to capture the big cats," said Hegade. On Sunday, a drone was also flown over the forest and villages to know the whereabouts of the cats but could not find any trace of the leopards. "Maybe because of the bushes and rocky place, we could not get any sign of the leopard," he said. The Forest Department camp is also making announcements telling people not to venture out of home and has also distributed some pamphlets with the same message. More than 20 forest officials are maintaining the vigil. "We are also fixing some camera traps to catch a glimpse of the cats in our efforts to capture them." Hegade said the villages are located on the fringes of the Bantarakuppe forest.  Forest officials are awaiting the postmortem report of the victims, and have decided to give a compensation of Rs 7.5 lakh each.   Meanwhile, the department also found a pair of very young leopard cubs, probably a week-old which will be left at the place where they were found.  "We have captured three leopards, two male and one female. Male leopards aged about two years each and the female, four-and-half years respectively. They are from approximately 10 km away from the area where the killings were reported. But these leopards have nothing to do with the killings," Sadashiv N Hegade said. The department has examined the canines of the three captured leopards, along with other tests, before releasing them deep inside a different forest, Male Mahadeshwara Betta. Tiger capture Meanwhile on Tuesday, forest officials of the Bandipur Tiger Reserve managed to capture a tiger which had killed 15 livestock in the area. Officials in the know said that the tiger has an injury in its foreleg because of which it had taken to killing domestic animals. The tiger will be released back into deep forest after being treated by veterinarians.  The tiger was trapped after department officials had failed to tranquilize it on Monday even though it was flushed out by trained elements from thick bushes.

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No need for pass for inter-district travel in Karnataka, clarifies govt

Lockdown

If you are going by private vehicle, you will still be stopped at district borders since police officials are checking for vehicles entering the district from other states.

TNM Staff

Inter-district travel within Karnataka is now allowed without the need for passes, the Karnataka government has clarified. This means that travellers hoping to go from one district to another within Karnataka can move freely from 7 am to 7 pm. But they will be asked to stop at district borders since officials are checking for people travelling from other states.  This is because all inter-state travellers will be institutionally quarantined in a hostel or hotel identified by the government. "Our control rooms are coordinating. Details of vehicles entering the state border will be communicated to the destination district. Vehicles will be checked at the destination and those persons arriving from outside the state will be quarantined," a senior police official told TNM.  Despite this, some district administrations are continuing to collect details of travellers entering their district.  "We are still checking the inter-district passes on the border and we are still continuing with data collection to be on the safer side. We are awaiting clarity from the state government about this," says Mysuru DC Abhiram Shankar.  However, he added that no travellers are being turned away if they do not have passes. Earlier, people were asked to provide a reason for travel and also asked to upload relevant documents supporting their reason. The options ranged from returning migrants, loss of job, death in family, medical emergency, and other.  Public transport was thrown open in Karnataka on Tuesday and over 1,500 Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses commuted in the state transporting people to different districts. There will be no checking of people travelling in these buses, except for thermal screening to check temperature at the start of the journey.  Officials are also grappling with the challenge of maintaining physical distancing. Buses are commuting with reduced capacity. For instance, only 30 people commuted in KSRTC buses from Bengaluru to Mysuru. However, maintaining physical distancing was a tougher challenge in bus stations across the state which were crowded on Tuesday. "Communicating the need for physical distancing remains a challenge and we are trying to do this in addition to the other work we have," says Mysuru DC Abhiram Shankar. The Karnataka government reported 149 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday including 105 people with travel history to Maharashtra. The state has reported 1395 COVID-19 cases so far. 

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