10 women travelling to Goa for vacation die in accident in Karnataka

Accident

Six people including the driver of a tipper truck involved in the accident have been hospitalised.

TNM Staff

Ten women who were travelling to Goa on vacation and their driver were killed on Friday in a road accident in Karnataka’s Dharwad district after a minibus collided with a tipper truck along the Hubballi-Dharwad bypass near Itigatti. Among the deceased include the daughter-in-law of a former BJP MLA from Davangere’s Jagalur, Preethi Ravikumar. She is the daughter-in-law of former MLA Guru Siddanagouda. Dharwad Sub-urban Police Inspector Yaligar said that the accident took place around 8 am on Friday when the mini bus collided with the tipper truck, which was coming from the opposite direction.  A group of 16 women from Davangere, who were members of the Ladies Club, were travelling to Goa for a vacation, when the incident occurred. The Dharwad Rural Police said that the women had decided to visit the residence of their friend in Dharwad for breakfast and had decided to take a detour. The minibus was crossing the Hubbali-Dharwad bypass, when it collided into the tipper truck as there was not enough room on the road to maneuver, Inspector Yaligar said.  The driver of the minibus along with 10 women in the minibus died on the spot, the police said. The deceased include the driver Praveen, and the 10 women including Asha, Meerabai, Paranjyoti, Rajeshwari, Shakuntala, Usha, Veda, Veena, Manjula, Nirmala, Rajaneesh, Swati and Preethi Ravikumar. Five women and the driver of the tipper truck have sustained critical injuries and are currently undergoing treatment at KIMS Hospital in Hubballi.  The 32-km Hubballi-Dharwad bypass is a single lane located along NH 48 between Bengaluru and Pune. Inspector Yaligar said that the residents of Dharwad had been complaining of the bypass being dangerous as the stretch is narrow and that it was not being used as a one-way. He said that the road widening work had been delayed for the last few months due to differences between the contractors and the government. “An accident case has been registered. We are still investigating the case,” he added.  Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the death of the 11 people. In a tweet, he said, “Saddened by the loss of lives due to a road accident in Karnataka’s Dharwad district. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I pray for a quick recovery of those injured.”  Saddened by the loss of lives due to a road accident in Karnataka’s Dharwad district. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with the bereaved families. I pray for a quick recovery of those injured: PM @narendramodi — PMO India (@PMOIndia) January 15, 2021

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Aero India e-tickets sale now live, COVID-19 protocols strictly in place

Aero India

Visitors can stay at the exhibition venue only for limited hours and anyone found overstaying their visit will be fined.

TNM Staff

The sale of e-tickets for the 13th edition of Aero India is now live. Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the organisers have decided to allow the sale of tickets for a limited period on a first come first serve basis. The tickets will be issued in two categories — business and air display viewing area (ADVA). The event held at Yelahanka Air Force Station will commence on February 3, 2021.  Standard Operating Procedures to ensure safety while hosting the exhibition were chalked out.  Apart from prerequisite COVID-19 protocols, visitors will also have to produce an RT-PCR negative report, taken 72 hours prior to their entry. The tickets are being sold for two sessions, one full day session or a half-day session. The morning session will take place between 9 am and 1.30 pm followed by the afternoon session between 1.30 pm and 6 pm. While the tickets for a full-day session for business visitors are priced at Rs 5,000 for Indian nationals and $150 for foreign nationals, the tickets for the half-day session are priced at Rs 2,500 for Indian nationals and $75 for foreign nationals. Under the additional category, ADVA, one can buy tickets to enter the exhibition area. The tickets are priced at Rs 1,000 for Indians and $40 for foreign nationals. Tickets for Rs 500 and $20 for Indians and foreign nationals respectively are also available for the half-day session. The visitors can stay at the exhibition venue only for limited hours owing to COVID-19 protocols. Any visitor found to be on the premises beyond the pass validity will be fined Rs 5000 (Indian) and $150 (Foreign nationals) apart from the ticket price.  Aero India is a periodical air show and exhibition hosted by the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Exhibition Organisation. During this show, manufacturers and service providers from the Indian aerospace and aviation industry meet potential buyers of their products. The 12th edition was hosted between February 20-24, 2020 and was inaugurated by then Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. 

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Bengaluru metro line to airport to get green signal from Union govt soon

Transport

The Urban Affairs Ministry has sent the project plan to the Public Investment Board (PIB) for clearance.

TNM Staff

Representative Image

Union Urban Affairs and Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that the 56-km Outer Ring Road metro line to Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport has been finalised by the Urban Affairs Ministry. The project plan was sent to the Public Investment Board (PIB) for clearance by the Ministry of Urban Affairs. The Union Minister was speaking to the media after participating in the inaugural event of the Yelachenahalli-Silk Institute metro line from New Delhi through video-conferencing. Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited Managing Director Ajay Seth told the media that the PIB would send a memorandum to the Union Government after they approve it. “We are expecting to receive clearance in two-three months,” Seth told reporters during the same event. The airport line includes two phases — Central Silk Board to KR Puram (Phase 2A) and KR Puram to Kempegowda International Airport (Phase 2B).  Meanwhile, the Yelachenahalli-Silk Institute line of the metro is the first corridor under Phase 2 of Namma Metro. Phase 2 was sanctioned in 2014 and was supposed to be completed by 2018, but got delayed. This line is an elevated extension of the pre-existing Green Line route. The development comes days after the South Western Railways started train services to the international airport in the city from January 4, 2021. A total of five trains are being run between the city and the airport halt station. By the end of 2023, another train line to the airport as part of the recently approved dedicated suburban rail project is also expected to be ready. That line is expected to run trains faster and frequently.

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Trump admin races to enact term limits for top health scientists

The regulation, which the Department of Health and Human Services could issue as a direct final rule within days, would mandate job reviews every five years for career federal scientists.

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Biden to call for vast federal expansion of pandemic response

The plan will essentially federalize the current patchwork pandemic response, including spending $20 billion to speed up vaccinations.

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Karnataka CM caught in ‘CD controversy’, Congress demands investigation into allegations

Politics

Basanagouda Yatnal said, “CM BS Yediyurappa has made ministers those who have blackmailed him using CDs for the last three months”.

TNM Staff

Another political controversy is brewing in Karnataka after BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal alleged that a couple of the legislators who were given ministerial berths on Wednesday blackmailed the Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa with a CD. The Opposition have asked for an explanation with KPCC President DK Shivakumar demanding a probe into the allegations.  Speaking to reporters after Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa announced the induction of 7 new members to the Karnataka cabinet, Basanagouda Yatnal said, “CM BS Yediyurappa has made ministers those who have blackmailed him using CDs for the last three months. Three people, one political secretary and two (sitting) ministers, were blackmailing with some of his CDs One, who took oath as minister today, paid a sum to Vijayendra (Yediyurappa’s son) apart from using his CDs to blackmail him.” While the Chief Minister has chosen to not react to the controversy thus far, with more BJP leaders echoing similar sentiments, the Opposition has demanded that an investigation should be ordered by Yediyurappa. Addressing a press conference, DK Shivakumar said,"This is the voice of BJP leaders saying not Congress leaders. They say bribes were involved in selecting the cabinet ministers. What is the Income Tax department doing? Why is there no discussion about this? Why aren't they going for a suo motu case on this?,” Shivakumar said on Wednesday. Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah took to Twitter to call for action over the CD and the blackmail allegations.  “MLA has openly claimed that many BJP leaders have got ministerial berth by blackmailing @BSYBJP  using a CD.Does @CMofKarnataka  have courage to file a criminal case against those who blackmailed him?,” he tweeted. “@BJP4Karnataka  leaders have now come to sense about family politics of @BSYBJP There are defacto & dejure CMs in Karnataka. The real power is in the hands of Yediyurappa's son. Many know this truth,” he added. .@BJP4Karnataka MLA has openly claimed that many BJP leaders have got ministerial berth by blackmailing @BSYBJP using a C.D. Does @CMofKarnataka have courage to file a criminal case against those who blackmailed him? 1/2 — Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) January 14, 2021 BJP is imploding in Karnataka with 20 BJP MLAs abusing CM Yediyurappa in public after Cabinet expansion. BJP leaders are saying Yeddy is being blackmailed by some MLAs using a 'CD' Nation Wants To Know what does this CD have? Do Modi/Shah know? BJP = Blackmailers Janata Party — Srivatsa (@srivatsayb) January 14, 2021 Yediyurappa’s son Vijayendra was at the centre of a controversy in October 2020 when the editor of the Kannada channel Power TV went into hiding and the channel was shut down. The incident followed allegations raised on the channel about a bribery scandal allegedly involving the chief minister’s family. Read: Bengaluru police search private channel after complaint related to ‘sting’ on BSY family  

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Kodagu DC Annies Joy to leave post after two years

Politics

Annies took charge as DC of Kodagu in 2019 and was at the helm of the district during the 2019 floods and landslides.

Prajwal Bhat

Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Annies Kanmani Joy announced on Wednesday that she will be leaving her post, two years after she was appointed in 2019. Annies will be taking a leave of absence from Thursday to join her husband Stephen Mani, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer posted recently as the first secretary to the Indian Embassy in Washington DC in USA. "I have had a successful two-year tenure in Kodagu as Deputy Commissioner. Thank you everyone for the support and warmth provided. The beautiful memories in Kodagu will be cherished forever," she said in a statement. Speaking to TNM, "I made the request for a break. I am leaving to spend time with my family and my daughter Apoorva," Annies Joy said. She said that she will be returning to service later this year in a new role. Annies took charge as DC of Kodagu in 2019 and was at the helm of the district during the 2019 floods and landslides. It was a year after the devastating floods and landslides in the hilly district in 2018. In the months leading up to the monsoon, extensive preparations were taken up and district authorities worked with geologists to survey the areas affected. But their preparations were thrown out of gear when landslides struck in southern Kodagu, an area that was not heavily affected in 2018 A landslide in Thora village left 10 residents of the village dead and Annies Joy along with the then Superintendent of Police  Suman D Penneker and the then Zilla Panchayat CEO Lakshmi Priya were praised for their response on-ground. The trio regularly made the journey to the landslide affected area in Thora, trudging through the slushy mud, to coordinate the search operations for the missing persons. "The residents of Kodagu remember the officers were coming to the landslide area in our village and speaking to Prabhu Kumar, a local who lost his family in the landslide," Vijay, a resident of Thora told TNM. In 2020, Annies was criticised for an FIR against journalists from the Cauvery Times for two articles which criticised the DC. An official in the DC office filed a police complaint against Vasanth, a reporter, and the editor of Cauvery Times, a Kannada paper. The articles, published in May and June 2020, criticised the district officials' handling of the post-lockdown rules of designated red and green zones. It also alleged through an anonymous letter that the DC and the then SP of the district were misusing disaster relief funds. Prior to this, Annies Joy moved quickly to shut down tourist spots in Kodagu in March 2020 before the national lockdown was announced. Residents in the district said that her background in nursing studies helped during the early days of the lockdown. Annies completed her nursing studies at the medical college in Thiruvananthapuram in 2009 before writing the IAS exam in 2012. Before her posting as Kodagu DC, Annies worked as the Assistant Commissioner of Bidar, worked at the Karnaataka Bhavan and as the CEO, ZP of Tumakuru.  

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