Karnataka CM warns illegal beneficiaries to give up BPL ration cards

Crime

Nearly 63,000 such ration cards were cancelled before the COVID-19 outbreak, the CM noted and directed officials to initiate a campaign to cancel all illegal ration cards.

TNM Staff

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Thursday said government employees and owners of tractors and other vehicles must return the BPL (below poverty level) ration cards immediately, failing which stringent legal action would be initiated against them. The CM issued directions in this regard to officials as he conducted a review meeting of the Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs department on Thursday. Proper supply of ration must be ensured to eligible beneficiaries and action has to be taken to prevent misuse of the facility by those not eligible, Yediyurappa was quoted as saying by his office in a release. Nearly 63,000 ration cards were cancelled before the COVID-19 outbreak, he noted and directed officials to initiate a campaign to cancel all illegal ration cards. "This campaign would help in curtailing the financial burden on the state's reserves," he added. In the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, both the Central and state governments have distributed sufficient quantities of ration, and about 95% ration card holders have availed the benefit, the release said. Under the Chief Minister's Anila Bhagya Scheme, 98,079 beneficiaries have been given three gas cylinders free of cost, it added. However, despite the government’s claim, many citizen led srveys have shown that several people in the lower socio-economic class in the state were forced into acute distress during the lockdown. One detailed survey carried out by Azim Premji University along with the Centre for Advocacy and Research (CFAR) and Gauri Media Trust which came out last week, said that 74% of vulnerable households (household income less than Rs 10,000 per month) did not receive any government (central or state) assistance in terms of ration.  However, the sample in that survey was not random or representative of the state but was focussed on casual workers, self-employed persons and migrants across the state.

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Karnataka HC issues notice to Centre over mandatory usage of Aarogya Setu app

Coronavirus

he PIL mentioned that only 35% of India’s population owns a smartphone and this would mean that lower income groups would miss government services and opportunity to travel.

TNM Staff

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The Karnataka High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Central government over the mandatory use of Aarogya Setu’ app amid the COVID-19 pandemic. A bench headed by Chief Justice AS Oka issued the notice while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) on the matter. The petitioner in his PIL demanded that the use of the app be made voluntary instead of the mandatory rule for availing government facilities or for travelling on trains and flights. The Hindu reported that the petition was filed by one Anivar A Aravind who is a software engineer based in Bengaluru and also works for a city-based non-profit focused on democratising technology. His primary contention in the PIL is that the mandatory usage rule of the Aarogya Setu app works only in favour of those owning a smartphone and also stressed on issues related to breach of privacy of individuals. Further, the petitioner argued that the mobile phone being a personal device owned by the user, the government did not have a right or authority to direct usage of the app. Live Law reported that the matter will be heard again on June 12 and asked the government to respond by then. The petition also mentioned that while other democratic countries have also gone for similar solutions for contact tracing, the usage of those apps was voluntary and further, those apps were mostly using Bluetooth signals as opposed to the location of the user. The Hindu quoted the petitioner as stating that when the purpose of the app is to tell users if they have got in touch with an infected person, it can be done with the help of Bluetooth rather than tracking the location of the user.  The petition mentioned that only 35% of India’s population owns a smartphone and this would mean that lower income groups would miss government services and opportunity to travel. The petition also invoked the Puttaswamy judgement which outlined the principle of “data minimisation and purpose limitation”, the Live Law report said.

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BMTC to allow students to travel for II PUC exam by showing hall ticket or college ID

Transport

This is because the bus passes of students have expired.

TNM Staff

The Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation on Thursday said that Class 12 students writing their board exam on June 18 will be able to travel on buses by showing their hall ticket or college ID since their bus passes have expired.  "On 18 June, students commuting from their home to exam centres and returning can show their examination hall ticket or their student smart card. All driving staff are hereby informed about this," a note issued by the BMTC stated. The smart card passes issued in the previous academic year will allow students to commute.  The lone remaining state board Class 12 – or second PUC – exam is the English exam which could not be completed in March due to the lockdown imposed over the coronavirus outbreak in the country. The Karnataka government is keen on finishing the exam. The Karnataka government is also considering opening government and private schools in the state from July and invited opinions from parents and officials working in schools in the state.  TNM earlier reported that a majority of parents are opposed to the idea of reopening schools in July. They contended that reopening schools in the month of July would be too risky since many schools in the state are unprepared to handle the situation.  On Thursday, COVID-19 cases in Karnataka rose to 4,320 after 257 cases were recorded. The cases have risen over the past week with 388 cases recorded on Tuesday, which is the highest increase in a single day. Despite the rising cases, the state government appears keen to resume activities in the state including reopening schools and conducting Class 10 and 12 board exams. 

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179 stranded migrant workers airlifted to Raipur from Bengaluru in chartered flight

Migrant Workers

The air travel was arranged by the alumni of the Bengaluru-based National Law School of India University (NLSIU) and a few generous donors.

PTI

Image for representation

Helped by a group of law school graduates and generous donors, 179 stranded migrant workers, including women and children, were airlifted from Bengaluru to Chhattisgarh's capital Raipur on Thursday in a chartered flight. The air travel was arranged by the alumni of the Bengaluru-based National Law School of India University (NLSIU) and a few generous donors. It was the latest in a series of such flights arranged by well-meaning individuals to ferry migrant workers stranded in various parts of the country due to the coronavirus- enforced lockdown and provide them hassle-free travel. The IndiGo flight carrying 179 migrants, including women and children, took off from the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru around 8 am and landed at the Swami Vivekanand Airport in Raipur around 10 am, a Raipur airport official told PTI. A few civil society organisations in Chhattisgarh decided to bring back by flight over 350 migrant workers from Karnataka and contacted alumni of the NLSIU and National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR), Hyderabad, said Vinaysheel, who coordinated the effort. Alumni of the NLSUI paid for air travel of 179 passengers who landed in Raipur on Thursday while the travel cost of other 174 migrants, scheduled to land here from Bengaluru on June 5, was being footed by alumni of NALSAR, he said. The flight was sponsored by Ajay Bahl, the managing partner of a leading law firm, whereas the NLS Alumni team liaised with the Chhattisgarh government to ensure that the workers could reach their homes from Raipur, said Vijay Grover, a journalist who has been working for the cause of migrant workers stranded in Karnataka. The check-in process for the flight was carried out around midnight, Grover told PTI. He said that former students of the National Law School of India under their initiative 'Mission Aahan Vaahan', with contributions from within the alumni network as well as sponsorship from generous donors, ferried more than 500 stranded workers by chartered flights to Jharkhand and Odisha from Mumbai since May 28. "This is the first flight out of Bengaluru under Mission Aahan Vahaan and the initiative has been managed primarily by some NLS Alumni members who are based in Bengaluru," Grover said. Coming out of the Raipur airport, migrants looked relaxed and happy. For almost all of them, it was their first experience of air travel. "I am happy to have come back safely. I am thankful to all those who helped us return," said Rajni Chandra (28) who was carrying her two-year-old child in her arms. Chandra, who worked as a labourer at a construction site in Karnataka, was stuck there after lockdown was imposed in March to contain coronavirus. She was a bit jittery as she was traveling by aircraft for the first time, but the journey will remain etched in her memory forever, she said. The Raipur district administration made arrangement for medical screening of arriving migrants at the airport and provided buses to ferry them to their respective districts, said a local official. The passengers will be quarantined after they reach their home districts, he said.

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States prod nursing homes to take more Covid-19 patients

Offered vastly higher reimbursements, many substandard facilities are jumping at the chance to accept sick residents.

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Police arrest tactics at protests add to virus risk

The arrest and detention of thousands jeopardizes the health of demonstrators — and that of police officers and the broader community.

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Food delivery executives protest in Bengaluru, demand compensation for loss of work

Coronavirus

The United Food Delivery Partners’ Union have come up with a list of demands.

Soumya Chatterjee

A section of food delivery executives held a token protest in Bengaluru outside the Karnataka Labour Department office on Wednesday demanding compensation for loss of work due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Following the demonstration, the members of the United Food Delivery Partners’ Union, a Bengaluru-based collective, met Additional Labour Commissioners Manjunath and Narasimha Murthy. Most of the members of these unions are attached with app-based companies like Zomato and Swiggy. The union had previously approached the state government to seek some protection for these workers, who alleged abuse of workers’ rights by the companies. The protesters said that the Karnataka state government announced Rs 5,000 each as one time relief to construction workers’ and also to auto and taxi drivers. A relief package is announced for barbers and weavers as well.  In a statement, the union said, “The government is willing to announce relief packages to 11 other sectors as well. This is a very welcome move by the government, and it is much required at this hour of distress. But the government seems to have neglected lakhs of food delivery executives, who (were dubbed) ‘essential services’ during the period of lockdown. There is an emergent need of announcing a relief package to this section of workers as well.“ Detailing on their distress, the statement added, “Food delivery executives work on the basis of piece rates. Before the lockdown, according to an estimate, in Bangalore alone there were around 14 lakh orders per day, which were getting distributed among 1.5 lakh delivery partners. But now the number of workers as well as the number of orders are reduced to just 40 percent to 50 percent." It further said, "Now, the delivery executives will have to travel tens of kilometres for each order. Even then, the payout they receive for each order is very meagre and they are working for a paltry sum. The life of delivery executives who are working now is in doldrums.” The union also expressed apprehension that some of these workers who are attached to app-based companies and have left their workplace and returned to hometowns will be subjected to lower pays or even no work when they return.  The union had earlier met the state Chief Secretary, Deputy Commissioner of Dharwad and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Belagavi and submitted their memorandum. Their demands have been reproduced below 1. Immediately announce a relief package for food delivery executives. 2. Issue directions from the government to different platforms to not reduce the incentives and rate card. Rather, they should increase incentives. 3. Issue strict directions not to block ID’s of any worker who works under Zomato, Swiggy, Dunzo etc. 4. Food delivery executives reach out to many people and hence they are constantly under the threat of getting infected. Therefore, ensure that the companies provide necessary mask and hand sanitizer for the delivery workers. 5. There have been reports of attacks and robbery on food delivery executives during food delivery. Kindly take measures to ensure safe working conditions

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