Dakshina Kannada youth, who landed in Saudi jail after sharing OTP, returns home finally

Karnataka's Primary and Secondary Education Minister, Madhu Bangarappa, announced that skill-oriented classes will be introduced for students of grades 8 to 12 alongside the regular curriculum from the next academic year.

Speaking at the inauguration of the Skill and Employment Fair organized by the District Administration, Zilla Panchayat, and Skill Development Department at the National College of Education, in Shivamogga, he emphasized the importance of skill-based education in shaping students' futures.

"Introducing skill training at an early stage will help students acquire expertise in their chosen fields, secure desired jobs, and lead self-reliant lives," the minister stated.

To improve job opportunities for youth, Bangarappa proposed a transport facility for job seekers. Instead of organizing job fairs at the taluk level—where employer participation is limited—he suggested conducting them at district headquarters with free bus services for registered candidates from rural and urban areas. This initiative will be discussed with concerned officials and implemented next year, he added.

The Trump administration has given the go-ahead for a nearly $3 billion arms sale to Israel, sidestepping the standard congressional review process to expedite the delivery of 2,000-pound bombs widely used by the Israeli military in its ongoing onslaught in the Gaza Strip.

In a series of notifications sent to Congress on Friday, the State Department has reported it has approved the sale of more than 35,500 MK 84 and BLU-117 bombs and 4,000 Predator warheads worth $2.04 billion to Israel.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio “has determined and provided detailed justification that an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel of the above defense articles and defense services in the national security interests of the United States, thereby waiving the Congressional review requirements,” the department said.

Deliveries are set to begin next year, it said.

According to the same statement, Rubio has also approved another munitions sale to Israel worth $675.7 million to be delivered starting in 2028.

The Israeli regime has extensively used the MK 84, also known as the 2,000-pound bomb, in its genocidal wars against the people of Lebanon and Palestine, including the assassination of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.

Last May, the previous US administration attempted to curb Israel’s military aggression in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, by imposing a temporary ban on the sale of 2,000-pound bombs.

This effort, however, proved futile in halting the invasion, as the US continued to supply other weapons to the Israeli regime.

On February 25, Trump’s National Security Adviser, Michael Waltz, rescinded the ban to allow the State Department to resume the sale of the bombs to the regime.

The State Department has also approved the sale of Caterpillar D9 Bulldozers and related equipment for an estimated cost of $295 million to Israel.

The Israeli regime has used D9 bulldozers to demolish thousands of Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights has advised Caterpillar Inc. that by supplying the bulldozers to the regime, it is complicit in human rights violations.

D9 has been involved in several incidents of civilian deaths, including in 2023 when it was used against the refugees sheltering outside the Kamal Adwan Hospital.

Many parts of Karnataka, which have been experiencing hot and humid conditions over the past few days, are expected to receive pre-monsoon showers this week.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast rainfall over south-interior and coastal Karnataka on March 11 and 12.

According to synoptic observations, an upper air cyclonic circulation lies over the northeast equatorial Indian Ocean and the adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal, extending up to 5.8 km above mean sea level. Additionally, light to moderate southeasterly winds are prevailing over the State at lower tropospheric levels.

As per the forecast, isolated light rain and thundershowers are likely in Kolar, Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Chickballapur, Tumakuru, Ramanagara, Mandya, Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, Kodagu, and Hassan districts in south-interior Karnataka, along with Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in coastal Karnataka on March 11.

On March 12, rainfall activity may extend to Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru as well. However, dry weather is expected to prevail over the rest of the State.

In Bengaluru, temperatures remained high on Sunday, with the city and Kempegowda International Airport recording a maximum of 34.5°C, while the HAL Airport station reported 34.1°C. The minimum temperatures were recorded at 19.7°C, 18.5°C, and 18°C at these respective stations.

Over the next few days, Bengaluru’s maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to be around 34°C and 20°C. The highest-ever temperature recorded in March was 37.3°C in 1996.