2021: Heart-wrenching covid scenes in Karnataka and BSY’s exit as CM

News Network
December 28, 2021

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Change of guard that saw BJP’s seasoned oarsman in south of India, B S Yediyurappa, finally relenting and making way for Basavaraj Bommai as the Chief Minister and scenes of ambulances with dead bodies of Covid-19 victims waiting in front of crematoriums during the second wave of the pandemic -- 2021 was truly an eventful year for Karnataka.

The ruling BJP managed to pass a contentious anti-conversion bill in the state Assembly in December amid stiff resistance from Opposition but is yet to have its way in the Legislative Council where it lacks majority.

The year saw the state being battered by torrential downpour, for the fourth year in a row, the covid surge in May, the emergence of India's first set of Omicron cases of coronavirus and inter-state disputes with Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu over different issues. For Yeddiyurappa, the BJP’s "comeback man" in Karnataka, there however seems to be no "closure". He stepped down from the post on July 26, coinciding with his government completing two years in office.

It is also too early to write a political obituary of the 78-year-old Lingayat strongman who has been the face of the party in the state for decades but could never complete a full term in office despite becoming the chief minister four times, as he continues to enjoy clout. That he ensured his loyalist Bommai succeeded him in the BJP's southern citadel on July 28 is a testimony that Yeddiyurappa continues to hold sway.

For the architect of the BJP's first-ever government to the south of Vindhyas, age was seen as a primary factor for his exit from the top job, with an unwritten rule in the saffron paty of keeping out those above 75 years from elective offices; also the high-command wanted to make way for new leadership, ahead of the assembly polls, likely by mid-2023, according to some analysts.

According to BJP sources, rumblings within the party with complaints about his "authoritative" style of functioning, his younger son and state vice president B Y Vijayendra’s alleged interference in the administration and allegations of corruption, may also have contributed to his exit.

Even as Bommai is trying to navigate the choppy waters of politics and making efforts to manage "natives" and "migrants" factions of the party, speculation surrounding his possible exit by early next year has rocked the ruling party, despite Union Home Minister Amit Shah announcing that the CM would lead the BJP in the 2023 polls.

Though BJP leadership and Bommai himself have rejected such speculations, rumours regarding his possible exit refuse to die down, citing his knee ailment, and also certain allegations of irregularities like the bitcoin scam and 40 per cent commission charge by government contractors. BJP losing Hangal assembly segment, which is Bommai's neighbouring constituency and a not-so-great performance in the recent MLC polls under his leadership seem to have added to his worries.

Congress too was in the news as political one upmanship between its top two faces -- Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah and state President D K Shivakumar -- overshadow developments in the party, with MLAs and supporters of both openly projecting their leaders as the party's CM face.

With the next assembly polls seen as crucial for the party's future, JD(S) started preparations this year by holding a series of training sessions for workers aimed at independently coming to power in the assembly polls, by winning a minimum of 123 seats, even as several of its leaders are looking at jumping the ship.

On the pandemic front, Covid-19 continued to haunt the state this year too, with daily infections and death peaking to over 50,000 cases and nearly 350 fatalities in May, which resulted in the government imposing strict curbs including lockdown in the state.

With infections peaking, the system's preparations to tackle the pandemic were put to test as shortage of beds in hospitals and ICUs affected the treatment of critically ill patients. In a shocking incident 24 Covid patients allegedly died due to oxygen shortage in May, in Chamarajanagara district.

Heart-wrenching scenes were witnessed during the months of April-May, as ambulances carrying dead bodies of covid victims were seen waiting outside overburdened crematoriums in the city. This had forced the government to set up open crematoriums.

In the fag end of the year, the country's first two Omicron cases were detected in Karnataka on December 2, one of them being a local and the other an international traveller from South Africa. Recently there has been a steady increase in the number of covid-19 clusters in the state as well as Omicron infections, forcing the government to impose "night curfew" for 10 days from December 28 and to ban all New Year parties and gatherings in public places.

After the anti-cow slaughter legislation last year, the government passed the Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021, in the Assembly, prohibiting unlawful religious conversion by misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means and has penal provisions.

While the government cleared the Assembly hurdle amid stiff resistance from the Congress and JD (S), the fate of the legislation now hangs in balance since it has to pass the Council test where the ruling dispensation does not enjoy majority.

For the fourth consecutive year since 2018, most parts of Karnataka were affected by flooding and landslides, due to torrential rains, causing damage to life and property. According to the government, at least 42 people died in floods and rain in October and November, and crop losses have been estimated at 9.90 lakh hectares.

The overall estimated damage is said to be at Rs 11,916.30 crore, while the state has sought Rs 1,281 crore as relief from the centre, as per norms, for the damage caused.

Certain incidents during the year such as e-commerce giant Amazon selling bikinis having colours of the Karnataka flag and emblem on its Canada site, tech giant Google's search result showing Kannada as India's "ugliest language", and alleged "imposition of Hindi" by the Centre, created a widespread social media outrage in the state and saw resurgence of regional pride in some way.

There were disputes with neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu regarding the implementation of Mekedatu project over Cauvery river, and with Maharashtra on the border issue following recent incidents of defacing of statues of national icons Shivaji Maharaj and Sangolli Rayanna in Bengaluru and Belagavi and burning of Kannada flag in Kolhapur. The gang-rape of a college girl by six men near Chamundi Hills in Mysuru sent shock waves across the state.

Kannada cinema's reigning star, Puneeth Rajkumar, died in October at the age of 46, leaving his fans shell-shocked and the state mourning. 
 

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Agencies
March 28,2025

Udupi: Deputy Commissioner K. Vidya Kumari has directed officials to expedite land acquisition for designated industrial zones in the district to facilitate new industries. She issued these instructions during a meeting at Rajatadri on Wednesday.

Lands have been identified across various taluks for industrial development. The DC emphasized that KIADB must acquire these lands and ensure essential infrastructure—electricity, roads, and drainage—to attract industries and generate employment.

A total of 77 acres of private land has been acquired and compensated, including 31.2 acres in Kerebettu village, Hebri taluk, and 45.7 acres in Shivapura village. However, approval for 36.5 acres of government land is still pending. She instructed the forest department to assess whether this land falls under an eco-sensitive zone.

For the Belapu Industrial Area, the DC urged officials to accelerate minor land acquisitions for road expansion and commence construction at the earliest. She also mandated rainwater harvesting systems for all units in the Miyaru Industrial Area to tackle water scarcity.

Currently, 22 export-based units operate in the district. The DC encouraged further promotion of exports and an increase in their number.

The meeting was attended by Joint Director of Industries Nagraj V. Naik, KIADB Development Officer Srinivasa Murthy, Small-Scale Industries Association District President Harish Kunder, Deputy Director of the District Industrial Center Seetharam Shetty, District Skill Development Officer Arun B., and others.

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News Network
April 4,2025

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Israel has announced the launch of a new ground onslaught in Gaza City, with rescuers saying military aggression has killed at least 30 people across the Palestinian territory since dawn.

In Gaza City, the Israeli military said ground troops had begun pushing into the Shejaiya neighborhood to expand the so-called "security zone" there, claiming that civilians had been allowed to evacuate the area. 

Initial reports, however, said a Palestinian woman and her daughter were just killed in an Israeli artillery shelling on displaced people in Shejaiya.

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli military aggression had killed at least 30 people in the Palestinian territory since dawn, adding that the toll was "not final".

A single Israeli strike on Khan Yunis killed at least 25 people, a medical source at the southern city's Nasser Hospital said. 

"The situation is very dangerous, and there is death coming at us from every direction," Elena Halas told AFP reportedly via text message, adding that she and her family were trapped in her sister's house in Shejaiya.

Israel has pushed since the collapse of a short-lived truce in the war to seize territory in Gaza. Simultaneously, it has escalated attacks on Lebanon and Syria, with a strike in the south Lebanese city of Sidon killing a Hamas commander along with his son on Friday. 

Minister of military affairs Israel Katz had said on Wednesday that Israel would bolster its military presence inside the Gaza Strip to "seize large areas that will be incorporated into Israeli security zones", without specifying how much territory.

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military was dividing Gaza and "seizing territory" to force Hamas to free the remaining captives seized in the October 2023 operation inside southern settlements. 

Netanyahu has said his regime is working closely with the US to implement President Donald Trump's plan to displace Gazans.

Latest air raids have targeted Gaza City, as well as Beit Lahia, Rafah, and Khan Yunis, killing dozens of people and injuring several others.

On Thursday, hundreds of thousands of fleeing Gazans sought shelter in one of the biggest mass displacements of the war, as Israeli forces advanced into the ruins of the city of Rafah. 

A day after declaring their intention to capture large swathes of the crowded territory, Israeli forces pushed into the city on Gaza's southern edge which had served as a last refuge for people fleeing other areas for much of the war.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Thursday that 112 Palestinians were killed by Israeli airstrikes, with at least 70 of those deaths taking place in Gaza City, in the north of the strip. 

Gaza's civil defense agency said women and children were among the dead, while six people were still unaccounted for in the strike on Dar al-Arqam School in the al-Tuffah neighborhood, northeast of Gaza City, including a pregnant woman who was expecting twins. 

Beit Hanoun Mayor Mohammad Nazek Al-Kafarna was one of the victims of the Israeli strike that hit the school on Thursday.

The Health Ministry said on Thursday that 1,163 people have been killed in the Palestinian territory since Israel resumed intense bombing on March 18, bringing the overall death toll since the war began to 50,523.

The usurping entity accepted longstanding negotiation terms by the Hamas resistance group under a Gaza ceasefire, which began on January 19.

On March 18, however, Israel unilaterally broke the truce and resumed its relentless bombing of Gaza.

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News Network
April 7,2025

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Mangaluru, Apr 7: In a chilling and heart-wrenching turn of events from Nadugallu in Nalakuru village of Sullia taluk in Dakshina Kannada, a mother and son’s desperate act to end their lives has left a community in disbelief. The duo allegedly consumed rodent poison in a joint suicide attempt, resulting in the son’s death and leaving the mother in a critical condition.

The deceased has been identified as 32-year-old Nithin, son of Kushalappa Gowda of Derappajjanamane, Nalakuru. His mother, Sulochana, is currently battling for her life in a hospital. According to sources, the incident took place three days ago, with both victims falling severely ill by the morning of April 6.

Nithin, an ITI diploma holder, had been managing his family's agricultural land. He had married Deeksha, a guest lecturer at a local college, about a year ago. At the time of the tragic incident, Deeksha was reportedly staying at her parental home. During her absence, Nithin and Sulochana allegedly consumed poison in what is believed to be a premeditated act.

Well-known in the village for his kind demeanor and strong social ties, Nithin’s untimely death has cast a shadow of grief and shock across the local community. His father, Kushalappa Gowda, is also said to be ailing.

The Subrahmanya police have registered a case and initiated an investigation to uncover the circumstances leading to this devastating event.

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