Gold worth Rs 51 lakh seized from 2 UAE passengers at Mangaluru Airport

In the heart of Mangaluru, where rising air pollution is spurring public health worries, voices are calling for a greener, cleaner shift in the city’s public transport. Leading this call is APD Foundation, a Mangaluru-based environmental NGO, which has urged Forest, Ecology, and Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre to mandate electric vehicle (EV) adoption in public transport.

Abdullah A Rehman, CEO of APD Foundation, emphasized in a formal letter to the minister that Mangaluru’s public transportation system—efficient and organized with both government and private players—could transition smoothly to EVs in stages. He suggested that government-backed financial incentives, partnerships with EV manufacturers, and collaborations with environmental groups could streamline the switch.

Rehman stressed the potential of EVs to cut down emissions, enhance air quality, and reduce noise levels, noting the quieter operation of electric buses. He confirmed that a copy of his letter was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner as well.

However, Dilraj Alva from the Dakshina Kannada City Bus Association noted potential challenges, explaining that the shift might take up to two years due to infrastructure and budget hurdles. Most EV buses, he explained, are procured through aggregators, not directly by individual operators. The addition of charging stations and other essential infrastructure further complicates the transition.

Alva also raised the economic concern: while diesel buses are priced between ₹30-40 lakh, electric buses can cost up to ₹1 crore. Reflecting on recent meetings with companies, including one in Manipal, he questioned the assumption that EVs are an absolute solution to pollution. “EVs aren’t entirely eco-friendly, especially when considering battery disposal,” he cautioned.

The media office in the Gaza Strip, where the Israeli regime has been waging a genocidal war since last October, says as many as 188 Palestinian journalists have been killed since the onset of the brutal military onslaught.

The office provided the figure on Saturday, naming four journalists as the most recent victims of the onslaught.

It identified the foursome as Zahraa Mohammad Abu Sukheil, Ahmad Mohammad Abu Sukheil, Mustafa Khadr Bahar, and Abdel Rahman Khadr Bahar.

The office said it “strongly condemns the targeting, killing, and assassination of Palestinian journalists by the Israeli occupation and holds it fully responsible for committing this heinous crime.”

“We call on the international community, international organizations, and those involved in journalistic work worldwide to take action against the occupation, pursue it in international courts for its ongoing crimes, and pressure it to halt the genocide and the targeted killings of Palestinian journalists,” it said.

Earlier in the day, the office said the Israeli regime had bombed the tents sheltering journalists and displaced persons at the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital in the city of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza for the ninth consecutive time.

The atrocity that claimed the lives of two people and injured 26 others came as part of “the genocidal crimes committed by the Israeli occupation army against hospitals, civilians, and displaced persons,” it said.

The media office held the regime and the United States, its biggest ally, as well as other countries aiding the genocide fully responsible for such systematic crimes.

At least 43,552 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and 102,765 others wounded since the launch of the war that followed a retaliatory operation by Gaza’s resistance groups.

The fatalities include 44 people, who were killed across the coastal sliver, in the most recent phase of the military onslaught.

As many as 24 of the victims were killed in the northern part of the territory, where the regime has markedly intensified its deadly attacks for weeks.

They included an eight-year-old child and a five-year-old one, who lost their lives after Israeli warplanes targeted a group of minors filling up jerry cans with water alongside their mother at the Jabalia Refugee camp.

Gaza’s heath ministry, meanwhile, said a number of victims remained under the rubble and in the streets following Israeli airstrikes, saying ambulances and civil defense teams could not reach them due to the sheer extent of the destruction caused by the raids and obstruction caused by the regime.

Also on Saturday, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, a United Nations-backed assessment, warned that famine was looming in northern Gaza amid escalated Israeli aggression and the regime’s near-total siege of the targeted areas.

The alert from the Famine Review Committee warned of "an imminent and substantial likelihood of famine occurring, due to the rapidly deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip."

On October 17, the body projected that the number of people in Gaza facing "catastrophic" food insecurity between November and April 2025 would reach 345,000, or 16 percent of the population.

The IPC report classified that figure as Phase 5 -- a situation when "starvation, death, destitution, and extremely critical acute malnutrition levels are evident."

The Israeli military, however, questioned the report's credibility.

"To date, all assessments by the IPC have proven incorrect and inconsistent with the situation on the ground," the army said in a statement, denouncing "partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests."

Mangaluru: A tragic accident took place on Saturday at Chembugudde near Thokkottu, claiming the life of a 47-year-old woman after a tanker lorry ran over her. The victim, identified as Rahmat H Rashid, was riding pillion with her husband, Abdul Rashid G, on their scooter. 

The couple was traveling from Yenepoya Hospital to Bajpe when the scooter skidded on the poorly maintained road. Rahmat fell onto the road and was fatally struck by a tanker lorry that was coming from behind. Despite being rushed to the hospital, doctors declared her dead upon arrival.

The incident prompted a swift response from the DYFI Ullal Taluk Committee, which staged a protest on Saturday night, condemning the unsafe condition of the road. Nithin Kuthar, president of the committee, criticized MLA and Legislative Assembly Speaker UT Khader for failing to ensure safe infrastructure, despite touting the road as toll-free. 

Kuthar demanded immediate repairs, warning that the committee would march to the MLA’s office with black flags if the road is not fixed within a week.

Former DYFI State President Sunil Kumar Bajal also voiced frustration over the deteriorating condition of Thokkottu market, highlighting the struggles people face while crossing roads riddled with dangerous potholes. In response to public outcry, temporary repairs were made to the road at Chembugudde on Sunday, though locals remain wary and demand a more permanent solution.