Olinda Pereira, noted social worker and educationist from Karnataka, passes away at 95

Death

She was the founder of Principal School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya in Mangaluru and founder of the Vishwas Trust.

Harsha Raj Gatty

Dr Olinda Pereira (95), the founder of Principal School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya, Mangaluru and founder of Vishwas Trust, passed away on Sunday. She is known for introducing social work education in Karnataka. Born into a Catholic family on August 15, 1925, Olinda was the youngest daughter of Martin and Lily. She received a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree from St. Agnes College, followed by a Bachelor of Education degree (B Ed) from St Ann’s. She taught in St. Mary’s High School for 12 years. She then went on to complete her MA in psychology from Banaras Hindu University. She joined French religious congregation Daughter of the Heart of Mary and travelled to Paris in 1961 for her religious formation. When she returned, she was part of the founding team of School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya and served as Founder Principal of the college from 1961 to 1982. She was awarded a PhD by Mysore University for her thesis on the adjustment problems of pre-adolescents. School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya was the first of its kind educational institution in the state and was affiliated to Mangalore University. The institution started off with a diploma course in social work. Later, the University sanctioned a postgraduate degree Masters in Social Work. The graduate course of Bachelor’s in Social Work was sanctioned in 1972 with the intake limit of 50 students. In 2007, the college became autonomous.  Post retirement, Dr Olinda went on to start Institute for Working Women’s Hostel and Women’s Development Centre in Delhi. She stayed in Delhi until 1991 and was then transferred to Nairobi where she set up a new Provincial House. She returned to Delhi in 1994. Upon returning to Mangalore, she started working for the causes of senior citizens. She founded Vishwas Trust in 1999. With Vishwas, she spearheaded the cause of senior citizens. Vishwas provides daycare facilities for the elderly and also trains people to treat and provide geriatric care. Vishwas also runs a 24-hour helpline for the elderly in collaboration with Pandeshwar Police Station. Dr Olinda also served as the president of the National Committee on Women. Her publications included 'Understanding Children', 'Adjustment and its Correlation among Pre Adolescents' and 'Domestic Workers' Struggle'. She was honoured with Mahatma Gandhi Peace Award from McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada in 1979, Women Achiever Award from St Agnes College in 1997, Sandesha Award for Social Service in 2002; Rachana Woman of the Year in 2008, Veera Rani Abbakka Award (for Social Service) and Karavali Honorary Award 2015-16. Content provided by StoryInfinity

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3 days of Bengaluru rains: 2 dead, trees uprooted, electricity cut off in some places

Rains

Bengaluru saw heavy rains on three consecutive days, which have wreaked havoc in many parts of the city.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Bengaluru saw heavy rains on three consecutive days which have wreaked havoc in many parts of the city. On Friday, May 29, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) daily rain reports said that many areas in the city saw heavy rainfall.  RR Nagar saw 58 mm of rain, Bagaluru reported 50 mm, Gantigehalli reported 70 mm, Raj Mahal reported 54 mm, Peenya 54 mm, and Bangalore University campus reporting 56 mm in a single day. While many Bengalureans may be enjoying the pre-monsoon rains that have been lashing the city for the past few days, many areas in Bengaluru have been struggling with waterlogging, and power outages as a result of the downpour The heavy rains and winds have also resulted in the falling of several trees in the city. According to the BBMP’s rain damage report for Friday, May 29, the civic body received a total of 60 complaints of tree fallings. The East zone under the BBMP’s classification was the worst-effected, with 15 fallen tree complaints. RR Nagar and Yelahanka zones were also badly affected, with 12 incidents of trees falling each. The West zone received 11 tree fall complaints.  btm 2nd stage #BangaloreRains pic.twitter.com/8skEqn1WSS — Srikant (@Sree347) May 24, 2020 Look at how much rain we got at Sahakarnagar yesterday! This is close to 10% of Bangalore’s yearly average @BngWeather ?#BangaloreRains pic.twitter.com/QeTUjFgwbC — Sachin (@sachinuc) May 30, 2020 There were also 2 complaints of rain waterlogging in West Zone and Yelahanka zone also had four water logging complaints. Heavy rain and Strong winds in bangalore #Bangalore #Bengaluru #BangaloreRains pic.twitter.com/cQyd0fx4DM — Rahul Singh (@desiprogrammer) May 24, 2020 Due to heavy rains over the past week, two lives have also been lost in the pre-monsoon showers the city witnessed. Falling trees and unstable constructions led to the loss of life of two working women in the city. Read: Techie and lab technician killed in rain-related incidents in Bengaluru Several Bengalureans also complained of power outages even as work from home continued amid the lockdown. The Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) also received several complaints of electricity supply being disconnected due to the rains. #BangaloreRains Guess what? Power has gone! @NammaBESCOM pic.twitter.com/BQPbd3qLCG — Akash Chaudhuri (@akash_chaudhuri) May 28, 2020 One day, in the far future, rains and electricity will coexist in Bangalore. One day. — Sandhya Ramesh (@sandygrains) May 30, 2020 Heavy rain's in and around our thippasandra ward, many trees have been uprooted, we request all our residents to reach home safely and pl feel free to call us on 9481406267#BengaluruRains@Abhilas04478233 @ pic.twitter.com/BMxG5X3yNl — IYC C.V. Raman Nagar Social Media (@v_iyc) May 26, 2020 Siddappa, a BESCOM engineer in Koramangala division, told TNM, "Three electric poles fell during the rains in our division. This might happen because a tree falls on a wire, and the wires are unable to withstand the weight, and so the pole also comes down. We have to then cut the power supply, and clear the trees before we can fix the poles and resume power. Now the poles have all been fixed.  

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Karnataka Public Accounts Committee mulls privilege motion against Speaker

Coronavirus

The PAC chairman HK Patil said that the Speaker blocking their probe into the procurement of COVID-19 equipment is equivalent to corruption.

TNM Staff

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Karnataka state legislature, led by senior Congress MLA (Member of Legislative Assembly) HK Patil, is planning to move a privilege motion against Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri for not probing alleged corruption in the procurement of COVID-19 equipment. The PAC had already sought a report from the Health and Family Welfare Department after allegations of corruption surfaced with regards to the misuse of public money in the procurement of devices and personal protective equipment. The Hindu reported that the Speaker had already barred the PAC to probe the matter on May 27 through an order. The order barred the members of the committee to make field visits or met department officials citing the COVID-19 pandemic. Hindu quoted Patil saying that the Speaker’s order was equivalent to encouraging corruption and restricting the power and privilege of MLAs and the PAC itself. The Hindu report said that a decision if the PAC will move a privilege motion against the Speaker will be taken in a meeting scheduled to be held on June 2. The Times of India reported that the PAC had sought permission to visit quarantine facilities and COVID-19 hospitals and do a status check on the quality of the new equipment procured. TOI quoted Kageri saying that the PAC has also written to Chief Secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar to keep documentation of the orders made by the state for sanitisers, masks and other goods. The allegation of corruption came as the government had given the Karnataka Drugs Logistics and Warehousing Society exemption from the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement Act. Patil was further quoted as saying that the PAC was obligated to investigate the orders as complaints came that the same ventilator and sanitisers were purchased at different prices from the same vendor.    

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Karnataka govt bans spitting of tobacco, 'paan masala' in public places

Coronavirus

The World Health Organisation and the Indian Council of Medical Research have already advised against public spitting in view of the pandemic.

TNM Staff

Representational image/PTI

The Karnataka government on Saturday banned spitting of chewed tobacco and 'paan masala' in public places across the state, in an effort to avert the spread of COVID-19, an official said on Saturday. "As per the powers conferred by the Karnataka Epidemic Diseases Ordinance 2020 Section 4(2) the state has banned the use of chewing tobacco products and consumption of paan masala products and spitting them in public places, so as to prevent the spread of corona and other communicable diseases," said an official in an order. Violators will be booked under IPC (Indian Penal Code) sections 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 268 ( Public nuisance.), 269(Negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (Negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and others. The Karnataka government has already banned the sale of single cigarettes. The central government had asked all the states and union territories in April to initiate steps to curb public use of tobacco to tackle the spread of coronavirus. The World Health Organisation and the Indian Council of Medical Research have already advised against public spitting in view of the pandemic. The decision was welcomed by activists who have been campaigning for banning spitting in public places. Odette Katrak, co-founder of Beautiful Bengaluru, who has been driving a #StopIndiaSpitting campaign said, “Chewing tobacco induces the urge to spit and that in today's context is a disaster because it means a faster spread of COVID-19. Our petition and open letter ensured spitting itself is punishable, plus the PM mentioned it in Mann Ki Baat. Now, this announcement to follow gives hope. Even if it doesn't translate to the issue being solved overnight, it puts the issue more surely in the public eye, making it clearly a national priority.” She added, “People will not stop spitting overnight but will not be able to spit as freely anymore. We are certain that if earlier just 35% of those who do not spit got involved, that will now increase 90%  who will get involved and engage with someone spitting- as indicated by a survey we conducted to shape our ongoing campaign.” (IANS inputs)    

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CM Yediyurappa appoints his grand-nephew and former PA as political secretary

Politics

NR Santhosh was seen with rebel leaders from the Congress and JD(S) around the time they resigned, prompting the collapse of the coalition government led by HD Kumaraswamy in 2019.

Prajwal Bhat

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa named his former personal assistant and grand-nephew NR Santhosh as a political secretary of the Chief Minister on Saturday. Santhosh was seen with rebel leaders from the Congress and JD(S) around the time they resigned, prompting the fall of the coalition government led by HD Kumaraswamy in 2019. This paved the way for the BJP to seize power in Karnataka. Santhosh was seen with 11 rebel leaders from the Congress and the JD(S) outside the Oakwood Hotel in Bengaluru’s UB City just a few minutes before the legislators tendered their resignations to the Speaker’s office. He was also seen with independent MLA H Nagesh when he boarded a flight at the HAL airport in Bengaluru.  The appointment of Santhosh, a known former aide of Yediyurappa and a BJP member with close links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), comes at a time seven BJP leaders, particularly from north Karnataka, got together for closed-door meetings.  The appointment of Santhosh means that he will join senior MLAs MP Renukacharya and SR Vishwanath as political secretaries to the Chief Minister. Prior to his appointment, there were rumours of NR Santhosh distancing himself from Yediyurappa's camp and identifying himself with a rival camp. Santhosh worked closely with BS Yediyurappa for three years in the lead-up to the 2018 Assembly elections, interacting with MLA candidates across the state at that time.  "For many MLAs and party members, Santhosh was the point of contact to reach Yediyurappa but this was not the case after he became the Chief Minister," a source in the BJP told TNM. This came as a surprise to many within the party since he was repeatedly seen with rebel leaders from the Congress and the JD(S) and playing a role. But with his appointment as political secretary, he is once again involved closely with BS Yediyurappa.

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Centre allows unrestricted movement across country, states can restrict if needed

Coronavirus

State governments are allowed to impose restrictions if they wish and publicise it.

TNM Staff

The guidelines for lockdown 5.0 have been announced by the Central government and in a relief for people across the country, unrestricted movement of people and goods has been allowed. The Centre has however allowed states to regulate movement if necessary. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in its order stated that unrestricted movement of people and goods will be allowed both within states and across different states. "There will be no restriction on inter-state and intra-state movement of persons and goods,” reads the order issued by the MHA. While it stated that no separate permissions or e-permits were required for travelling, it also allowed state governments to frame rules by assessing the situation in their respective states.  “No separate permission/approval/e-permit will be required for such movements. However, if a state/union territory, based on reasons of public health and its assessment of the situation, proposes to regulate movement of persons, it will give wide publicity in advance regarding the restrictions to be placed on such movement and the related procedures to be followed," reads the order.  In the past few weeks, most states had started specific portals and asked people to register if they wanted to travel. There has been much confusion and chaos with states imposing different restrictions. The order further stated that the movement of special categories of persons including passenger trains, shramik trains, domestic and international air travel will continue to be regulated by standard operating procedures issued in advance.  “Movement by passenger trains and Shramik special trains, domestic air passenger travel, movement of Indian nationals stranded outside the country and of specified persons to travel abroad, evacuation of foregin nationals, and sign-on and sign-off of Indian seafarers will continue to be regulated as per SOPs issued,” reads the order. The order further states that the movement of goods and cargo will not be stopped “for cross land-border trade under treaties with neighboring countries”. While the lockdown was extended in containment zones in the country till June 30, phases for reopening of non-containment zones will begin starting June 8. 

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Bengaluru airport increases user development fee to compensate for revenue loss

Aviation

The new UDF will be applicable from June 1 for the year 2020-21.

IANS

Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has raised User Development Fee (UDF) by 17% for departing international passengers to compensate for revenue loss, an official said on Saturday. "The revised UDF for departing passengers at Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru is Rs 184 per pax (domestic) and Rs 839 per pax (international)," said an airport official. Earlier, the UDF was Rs 179 per pax (domestic) and Rs 716 per pax (international). The UDF for domestic departing passengers rose by 3% and for international passengers by 17 per cent. The new UDF will be applicable from June 1 for the year 2020-21. According to the airport, the Airport Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) has allowed Bengaluru Airport to increase the fees to compensate the loss of discontinuation of Fuel Throughput Charges (FTC). "AERA issued an order on May 26, 2020, allowing BIAL to increase landing charges and UDF for FY 2020-21 to compensate for the revenue loss, as a result of abolition of FTC," said the spokesperson. On January 8, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) ordered AERA to direct airport operators to discontinue FTC levy on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in any form at all airports. “The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) issued an order dated January 8, 2020 – addressed to AERA – directing airport operators to discontinue the levy of Fuel Throughput Charges (FTC) on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), in any manifestation, at all airports. It further directed AERA to compensate airport operators for this loss of revenue, as FTC was a regulated charge, by recalibrating other regulated charges such as landing charges and UDF,” a BIAL spokesperson said. FTC is also a regulated charge.

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