Karnataka bans online classes for students up to Class 5

Education

Karnataka Education Minister Suresh Kumar announced that pre-recorded classes will however be allowed.

Prajwal Bhat

Representative image

The Karnataka government on Wednesday announced that live virtual classes cannot be held for students of lower kindergarten, upper kindergarten and primary classes (Class 1 to 5) in the state. Pre-recorded classes, however, will continue for those classes. Fees for online teaching for these classes will also be halted with immediate effect.  Some schools in Karnataka have been holding live classes for students from Classes 4 to 7. These will immediately be halted till class 5. The announcement was made by Karnataka Education Minister Suresh Kumar in a press conference held on Wednesday. Online classes can continue for secondary classes.  The minister added that a committee will be formed to discuss how to engage students and the modalities of both online and pre-recorded classes. It was noted that many complaints around online classes were received from parents from across the state. On June 2, a meeting was held with those working in education, psychiatrists and other experts to discuss the issue.  “The screen time for certain classes and what will be appropriate will be discussed later. For now, we have made this decision for LKG, UKG and primary classes, considering their age and mental well-being,” the minister told the media. Earlier, experts from NIMHANS had stated that virtual classes ideally should not be held for students up to Class 3. Citing the World Health Organisation’s recommendation, Dr BN Gangadhar had told TNM that those under 6 years of age should not have more than one hour of screen time. The decision to have online classes for children has received a lot of criticism across the country. For one, it is based on the assumption that everyone has access to a laptop or computer as well as steady internet services to attend these classes. Further, the move also came without proper norms.

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Karnataka to decide on online classes, NIMHANS says not recommended for below class 3

Education

Commissioner of Public Instruction KG Jagadeesh said that a WhatsApp forward stating that online classes have been cancelled for students of classes 1 to 5 is fake.

Prajwal Bhat

The Department of Education and the Department of Public Instruction in Karnataka are yet to take a decision on whether it will cancel or continue online classes for school students in the state. Commissioner of Public Instruction KG Jagadeesh said that a WhatsApp forward stating that online classes have been cancelled for students of classes 1 to 5 is fake. "Department has not taken any decision on online classes yet. There are few complaints we received from parents. We are in the process consultation and we may come out with certain guidelines soon," Jagadeesh told TNM.  A WhatsApp forward message which was widely shared had claimed that the online classes were cancelled for those studying from classes 1 to 5.  "The government has decided to cancel online education for grades 1 to 5 amidst strong objections from the public sector, education experts and parents.  Experts worried that educating young children online could have a serious impact on health.. Accordingly, the government will cancel the online education of children from level one to grade 5, including government, private, subsidized and unaided schools," read the forwarded message. However, officials of the Karnataka education department including Education Minister S Suresh Kumar met on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the issue of holding online classes for primary school students in the state. The officials had also sought the opinion of mental health professionals at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS) regarding the issue Speaking to TNM, Dr. BN Gangadhar told TNM that NIMHANS had recommended that online classes should not be held for students up to 3rd standard.  "This is based on the World Health Organisation's (WHO) recommendation that those under 6 years of age should not have more than one hour of screen time. We also feel that lessons for those under this age is not too complex and it can be managed by family members teaching the kids. The teachers of nursery and playschool have also not received any training on how to teach children online," Dr. BN Gangadhar told TNM. He said that online classes should be explored for students studying in higher classes.  No guidelines have been issued for holding online classes in Karnataka although it has been more than a week since the academic year started and online classes were rolled out for private schools in the state. Meetings held last week over the issue proved to be inconclusive but students and parents are hopeful that the government issues guidelines for schools to clear up the confusion over online classes.   

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Despite court directive, BBMP allows trees to be chopped for metro construction

Environment

The BBMP gave BMRCL permission to chop trees even as the High Court had asked the expert committee to conduct a fresh survey of trees that BMRCL wanted to cut.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Theja Ram

Images courtesy Arun Prasad.

While the attention of people was diverted towards the lockdown and its fallout, Bengaluru’s civic body, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has quietly allowed the chopping of 123 trees for the construction of the Pink Line metro rail project undertaken by the Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited. On June 7, the BMRCL began cutting trees along Bannerghatta Road, even as the Karnataka High Court was yet to issue directions to the BBMP in this regard. On June 9, more trees were cut on this stretch, during the night. Visuals of the trees being cut were widely shared on social media show the Bannerghatta Road, towards the Jayanagar fire station completely devoid of trees. The trees were cut despite the Karnataka High Court asking the Special Committee for Trees on May 5 to survey all trees that the BMRCL meant to cut once again. So, how were so many trees cut without public knowledge? A timeline of events In December 2019, Dattatraya T Devare of Bangalore Environment Trust filed a PIL against felling of trees for the metro construction in the Karnataka High Court. After several hearings over the months, Chief Justice Abhay Sreenivas Oka, had issued an order dated March 4, where it had asked the Special Committee for Trees to issue recommendations to the BBMP as a plan of action regarding cutting down trees along the Bannerghatta Road.  In April 2019, BBMP had formed the Special Committee for Trees with Ganesan from the Ashoka Trust for Research on Ecology and Environment (ATREE) and Muthu Kumar from Indian Wood Science, along with retired officials from the Forest Department. The committee had recommended in April that the BBMP issue a public notice for cutting the tree as per the Karnataka Preservation of Trees Act 1976 and the High Court’s directions.  More recently, on May 22, the BBMP issued a public notice regarding chopping the trees on its website. Speaking to TNM, Deputy Controller of Forests, BBMP, Ranganatha Swamy, said that the committee had recommended that a notice be issued. As per the Karnataka Tree Preservation Act, the BBMP invited objections to the public notice. “We waited for 16 days. The Tree Act clearly states that if no objections are received after 15 days of issuing a public notice, then BBMP can cut the trees that have been identified,” Ranganatha Swamy said.  Dattatreya Devare, however, filed objections to the BBMP’s notice on June 1.  But on day 17 (June 7), BBMP gave BMRCL the green signal to cut down the trees for the metro construction project, Ranaganatha Swamy said.  BBMP now claims it had consulted the committee. “We did wait for objections and after meeting with the Tree Committee, we gave the go ahead,” Ranganatha Swamy told TNM.  Trees being felled on Bannerghatta main road in Bengaluru for metro work: authorities worked over time to chop as many trees as they could. pic.twitter.com/cbLlvCphe5 — Alithea Stephanie Mounika//ಅಲಿತ್ಯ ಮೌನಿಕಾ (@alitheasm) June 10, 2020 Speaking to TNM, Muthu Swamy from IWS said that the committee had only recommended transplanting the trees and not cutting them as the High Court had directed them to save as many trees as possible. “We had recommended to only transplant the trees. No where have we said that trees can be cut,” he added.  The civic body has also neglected a crucial direction issued by the court on May 5.  Chief Justice Abhay Sreenivas Oka had directed the Special Committee for Trees to conduct a fresh survey of all trees identified by BMRCL for chopping. The High Court had noted that the main objective was to save as many trees as possible.  It is not clear from the authorities as to how many trees have been cut so far as no proper documentation has been presented to the public. The BBMP website shows that 123 trees would be affected in phase 2 (R2 extension) of the Bengaluru metro project. The Metro has not shared information on how many of these trees are to be cut, transplanted or saved, despite repeated attempts. Canopy of trees on Bannerghatta road, before the metro struck its axe. What activists say Arun Prasad, an activist from Bengaluru said that there was no transparency in the manner in which both the BBMP and BMRCL went about cutting these trees. “They have gone ahead and finished their procedures while the courts were shut. The trees which are meant to be cut have not been marked properly, so we don't know exactly which trees are supposed to be cut. In this situation, they will be able to do whatever they want, and cut any tree as they please,” he said.  He went on to state that proper procedure has not been followed. “Even the trees which are meant for transplantation have not been processed properly. Pictures show that the canopy of the tree meant for transplantation has been cut completely, which is not the way that it is supposed to be done. Such a tree will not survive transplantation! The whole exercise of the expert tree committee is now highly questionable,” he added.  Rajani Santosh, another environmental activist in the city said that the trees were cut neglecting the court’s directions. “Do we have that many trees in Bangalore? It is not clear because the tree census has not yet begun, even though it has been ordered by the High Court. We don't know what percentage of the trees in the city are being cut and so we don't know how much is being lost." BMRCL has said that they have followed the procedure and taken permission to cut the trees. The High Court meanwhile on Wednesday stayed the tree cutting for the time being.

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Water supply to be affected in parts of Bengaluru on Thursday: List of areas

Water supply

An official told TNM that a pipeline will be relaid due to a metro station coming up in the city.

TNM Staff

Water supply will be disrupted between 6 am and 6 pm in several areas in Bengaluru on Thursday, June 11, due to pipeline work of the first phase of the Cauvery project along Bannerghatta Road. Speaking to TNM, a Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) official said, "The pipeline work is being taken up to take a deviation due to a metro station coming up. We will be shutting down the pipeline and taking up the developmental works tomorrow (Thursday)." "Since a pipeline passed through the Gottigere Station, it has to be bypassed and linked to the new pipeline, water supply will be stopped from morning 06:00 am to evening 06:00 pm on June 11," read a statement released by BWSSB.  The areas that may be affected are:   Vijaya Bank Layout  R.B.I.Layout  Konanakunte  J.P.Nagar 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th & 8th Phase  Puttenahalli  Jaraganahalli Chunchaghatta Main Road  Bilekahalli  Arakere  Arakere Mico Layout  Dollars Colony  Kodichikkanahalli  H.S.R.Layout  Bommanahalli  Mangammanapalya  Somasundara Palya  Parangi Palya  Agara  Bandepalya  Koramangala  Bellandur  Venkatapura   Jakkasandra  Teachers Colony  BTM layout -1st & 2nd Stage  Madivala  Venkateshwara Layout  Gurapapnaplaya  Bismilla Nagar  Suddangunte Playa  Jayanagar 4th ‘T’ Block  BHEL Layout  NAL layout  Krishnappa Garden  Arasu colony and surrounding areas.

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‘Put COVID-19 cess on tobacco products’: K’taka grp writes to GST council

Coronavirus

The collective Movement for Youth Awareness wants the government to hike the prices of beedis, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco.

TNM Staff

Representational image

A group of public health care professionals, activists and policy analysts in Karnataka are demanding a special COVID -19 cess on tobacco products to raise additional tax revenue for the government's COVID-19 stimulus package. For this, they have written to the GST (Goods and Services Tax) council appealing them to impose a COVID-19 cess on tobacco products. The collective called the Movement for Youth Awareness wants the government to raise the price of beedis, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco. They urge that the price of each beedi be increased by Rs 1, each cigarette stick by Rs 5  and a 52% increase in smokeless tobacco They claim this proposed additional cess will fetch the country an additional revenue of Rs. 49,740 crores (497.4 billion) which could cover about 29% of the stimulus package. To make a case for their demand, the gorup has said that India does not follow the World Health Organisation recommendation of  at least 75% of the retail price for all tobacco products should be all taxes. Currently, the total tax burden (tax expressed as a percentage of final retail price) is only 49.5% for cigarettes, and 63.7% for smokeless tobacco in India, well below the minimum recommended by the WHO.  Beedis, on the other hand, enjoy an extremely low tax burden of only 22% despite being at least as harmful as cigarettes, and are smoked by almost twice as many Indians as cigarettes, resulting in an estimated annual economic costs from diseases and deaths to the tune of Rs. 805.5 billion, or 0.5% of India’s GDP.  The group argued that this cess on all tobacco products will not only help raise the much needed revenue to fund the stimulus, it will also prevent the further spread of the virus especially amongst vulnerable populations by making tobacco products unaffordable and forcing them to quit. They project there will be a drop in tobacco consumption by 35% for beedis, 17% for cigarettes and 10% for smokeless tobacco products.  Based on studies conducted in several countries the advocates for this additional cess said that smokers and smokeless tobacco users may be at greater risk for severe illness when confronted with COVID-19 since it attacks the lungs and behaviours that weaken the lungs put individuals at greater risk.  “Imposing cess on all tobacco products, including beedis, is a winning proposition for the government as it will provide the much-needed additional tax revenue for COVID 19 stimulus package for providing relief to the people of the country. Taxation is the most effective but least utilised tool to reduce tobacco consumption. This is a very relevant step in this pandemic, as we know that Covid virus has worst fatality in patients with comorbidities (Non communicable diseases) which are caused by tobacco”, opined Dr. Vishal Rao, Onco-surgeon and Member of the Covid Consultative Group an independent think tank in a statement. “This will double the revenues for govt and half the deaths if acted promptly,“ he added Similarly,  Rijo John, an economist and a health policy analyst said that the unprecedented financial resources will be needed for the country to recover from the economic shock COVID has created. Even though imposing additional taxes on the general public might not be a viable policy option when consumption needs to be boosted, special COVID cess on tobacco, could be a win-win as it will discourage tobacco consumption and reduce COVID related risks while bringing in substantial revenue for the government. He said, “Re 1 COVID cess per stick of beedis and significant tax increases on cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products are expected to generate additional tax revenue to the tune of Rs. 50,000 crores.’’ In a statement, they further said India has the second largest number of tobacco users (268 million or 28.6% of all adults in India) in the world – of these at least 12 lakhs die every year from tobacco related diseases. The total direct and indirect cost of diseases attributable to tobacco use was a staggering Rupees 1.04,500 crores in 2011 or 1.16% of India’s GDP.

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Four Karnataka officials raided by Anti-Corruption Bureau

Raids

The officials raided included Satish Kumar, the Additional Commissioner of the Department of Commercial Taxes in the Karnataka government.

TNM Staff

Anti-Corruption Bureau meeting in Bagalkote

Four government officials in Karnataka were raided by the Anti-Corruption Bureau in the state on Wednesday. The officials raided 14 places in the state which had connections to these officers including L Satish Kumar, the Additional Commissioner of the Department of Commercial Taxes in the Karnataka government.  In a statement issued to the media, the ACB stated that the raids were conducted after they received information about accumulation of wealth and property beyond their known sources of income. However, the department has not revealed whether these allegations are true and were substantiated by evidence gathered during the raids. "Raids were conducted in 14 places connected to 4 government officials," the statement released by the ACB read. The officials in question are L Sathish Kumar, Additional Commissioner Department of Commercial Tax, N Ramakrishna,  Divisional Forest Officer, Srinivasapura, Kolar, Gopalshetty Mallikarjuna, Executive Engineer, District Development Cell, Raichur, Raghappa Lalappa Lamani, Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam Ltd (KBJNL) official in Almatti, Bagalkote. Satish Kumar, a senior government official in the Department of Commercial Taxes, is facing raids at his residence in Mysuru, his official residence in Dollars Colony in Bengaluru and in his office premises.  Similarly, the residences, official residences and offices of the other three government officials were raided across the state on Wednesday.   In addition a petrol pump and a tractor showroom owned by Gopalshetty Mallikarjuna were also raided.  The four officials are accused of corruption and accumulation of illicit wealth, ACB officials stated. 

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Probe launched to find two men posing as ticket examiners in Bengaluru

Coronavirus

The impostors were demanding fares for special Shramik trains from passengers in Bengaluru.

IANS

The South Western Railway (SWR) zone has begun an investigation to identify a duo who impersonated travelling ticket examiners (TTE) and demanded fare from migrants in a Shramik special train bound for Uttar Pradesh, an official said on Tuesday. "Investigation is on. First the persons need to be identified," railway zone spokesperson told IANS. The incident happened on Sunday in a special train packed with migrant labourers and departing from KSR Bengaluru station to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. The impostors started demanding Rs 905 from the passenger as fare to their destination. Incidentally, the matter came to light when an NGO (non-governmental organisation) tweeted about the incident, tagging some railway officials and the city police commissioner. One of the passengers called the NGO and complained about the matter. He told them that the impostors threatened to offload them from the train if they did not cough up the fare. The fake duo was seen wearing uniforms similar to a TTE. The Hindu reported that the video of this event was shot when the train was approaching Dharmavaram railway station. Both of them tried their trick in a few coaches but none of the passengers gave them the money, according to the official. "No one paid, I understand," said the official. On coming to know about the matter, the railway authorities checked the train and also announced at stations enroute about the matter to the migrants in the train. The train was also halted at Hindupur in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district where the railway police took the statement of the migrants. The railway zone is running daily Shramik special trains to multiple northern and eastern states and has already ferried more than 3 lakh people. Incidentally, travel for migrant workers back to their homes is now free after initially they had to pay around Rs 1,000 for their train journey to their hometowns.

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