St Aloysius College offers Biotechnology Finishing School

naeem@coastaldigest.com (CD Network)
August 1, 2012

aloysius

Mangalore, August 1: St. Aloysius College (Autonomous) will be offering a Post Graduate diploma course called Biotechnology Finishing School (BTFS) in two disciplines 'Plant Tissue Culture' and 'Fermentation and Bioprocessing from this year.

Announcing this at a media conference here on Wednesday Fr. Swebert D'Silva, Principal of the College, said that BTFS was sponsored by Government of Karnataka in collaboration with the Department of IT, BT and S & T. St. Aloysius is one of the 12 colleges offering this course, he said.

Dr Smitha Hegde, Head of Post Graduate Department of Biotechnology at St. Aloysius College, said that a total of 20 seats were available, out of which 10 would be allotted to each of the two disciplines.

“Admissions have already started online and August 2 is the last date for applications. Those who have cleared their Master's degree in Life Science, Biotechnology, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Bioinformatics or BE/BTech in Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, BPharm, Agriculture, Veterinary Sciences, MBBS and BDS are eligible for the course. Applicants will face a Central online entrance exam called Karnataka Biotechnology Aptitude Test (KBAT) on August 6 and 7, after which they will face an interview. Selected candidates will be given the choice of selecting their preferred discipline and will be awarded a fellowship of Rs 5000 a month sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, during the duration of the course,” she said.

Fermentation and Bioprocessing was offered last year in the college, while Plant Tissue Culture is a new discipline. Students of the course during the last academic year had been placed in Biocon, India, she added.

Fr. Melwyn D'Cunha was also present at the media conference.

For more details about the course and fee structure one could visit the website www.btfskarnataka.org or contact 0824-2449700/01.


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News Network
March 21,2025

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Assembly on Friday passed Bills doubling the salaries of the chief minister, ministers, and legislators, adding an annual burden of ₹62 crore on the exchequer.

The CM's monthly salary will increase from ₹75,000 to ₹1.5 lakh, while ministers will see a 108% hike, from ₹60,000 to ₹1.25 lakh. MLAs and MLCs will get ₹80,000 per month, up from ₹40,000, and their pension will rise from ₹50,000 to ₹75,000.

The Karnataka Ministers Salaries and Allowances (Amendment) Bill and the Karnataka Legislature Salaries, Pensions and Allowances (Amendment) Bill were passed without debate, as the Opposition BJP protested in the well of the House.

The Bills cited the rising cost of living as justification for the hike. The Assembly Speaker and Legislative Council chairperson will now receive ₹1.25 lakh per month, up from ₹75,000.

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News Network
March 27,2025

nandini.jpg

The Karnataka government has announced that Nandini milk will become ₹4 costlier per litre starting April 1, 2025. This is the second price hike this year.

The decision was made during a cabinet meeting led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Karnataka Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna and Animal Husbandry Minister K Venkatesh said the increase is meant to support dairy farmers by covering the rising costs of producing and processing milk.

Officials also said that:

>> The extra money from the price hike will go directly to the milk producers.

>> The earlier ₹2 price hike (announced on June 26, 2024) will be withdrawn.

>> The new price hike of ₹4 will apply to both 500 ml and 1-litre packets.

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coastaldigest.com news network
March 20,2025

Mangaluru International Airport (MIA), Karnataka’s second busiest airport, has seen 148.5kg of gold smuggled between 2019 and December 2024, with 90% arriving from the UAE. Customs officials recorded 346 cases, averaging 30kg of gold seized per year (2.5kg per month). Most smugglers are from Kerala and Bhatkal.

A senior customs officer revealed that MIA sees at least five gold smuggling cases per month. Numbers dropped during the pandemic but surged after flights resumed. Many offenders are first-time carriers, while some are habitual smugglers. With fewer flights, customs thoroughly checks passengers, making smuggling harder.

Smugglers constantly innovate concealment methods. Hiding gold in the rectum remains common, but gold is also found in trolley bags, mobile covers, chocolate boxes, milk powder, biscuit packets, and clothing layers. Electronic devices like car speaker magnets, LED bulbs, AirPods, wristwatches, and ballpoint pens have been used.

Unusual tactics include hiding gold in a woman’s hairband, a baby’s diaper, and even a kheer mix packet (347g). In one case, a passenger attempted to smuggle 100g in his mouth under a mask but was caught.

Officials note that while the UAE remains a key source, smugglers now bring gold from other Gulf countries, continuously adapting to evade detection.

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