Karnataka budget 2024-25 lists out steps to implement Yettihanole, Mekedatu other irrigation projects

News Network
February 16, 2024

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Bengaluru: Asserting his government's commitment to implement various irrigation and drinking water projects related to inter-state rivers including Mekedatu over Cauvery, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday in the state Assembly detailed clearances and approvals pending with the Central government.

Presenting the 2024-25 budget in the Assembly, he listed out steps to implement various projects such as Mekedatu, Kalasa-Banduri, Upper Krishna, Upper Bhadra and Yettihanole, among others.

A separate project division and two sub-divisions have already been set up to implement the ambitious Mekedatu Balancing Reservoir and drinking water project of Cauvery river valley, Siddaramaiah said, adding that a survey to identify land that will be submerged under this project and the counting process of trees have already been initiated.

He also said action will be taken on priority to commence work early after obtaining remaining necessary clearances from the competent authorities.

The Chief Minister said that the Central Water Commission has given clearance to the Detailed Project Report for utilising 3.9 TMC water under Kalasa-Banduri Nala Diversion Project and the state government has begun the tender process anticipating forest clearance from National Board for Wildlife.

"However, in the meeting of the National Board for Wildlife headed by the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the forest clearance has been deferred," he noted.

He also said that priority will be given to land acquisition and resettlement and rehabilitation as well as to complete sub-schemes under North Karnataka's ambitious Upper Krishna Phase-III Project, and that all necessary legal measures will be taken up along with pursuing the Central government to notify the final award of Krishna Tribunal-II.

Pointing out that the Central Government had announced grants of Rs 5,300 crore for implementation of Upper Bhadra Project in its 2023-24 Budget, Siddaramaiah said that no grant has been released so far.

The previous state government congratulated the Prime Minister in its Budget for declaring Bhadra Project as a National Project, he said.

"However, this has been proved false as the Central Government has not yet declared the project as a national project. Under this project, the State Government is planning to bring about 75,000 acres of land in Chitradurga district under irrigation and pursue with the Central Government to release the grants as announced in its budget to provide benefits to farmers."

To address the problem of reduction in water storage capacity of Tungabhadra reservoir due to silt accumulation, and to also fulfil a long-standing demand of farmers of the area, a detailed project report has been prepared for constructing a balancing reservoir near Navali in Koppal district at a cost of Rs 15,600 crore, Siddaramaiah said.

Consultation with Andhra Pradesh and Telangana regarding implementation of the project has been started, he said, adding that priority will be given for execution of the project.

Further, a pre-commissioning test has been conducted by discharging water to a delivery chamber near Doddanagara under Yettihanole Integrated Drinking Water Project, he said. Balancing reservoir work will be taken up in the current year along with completing all the lift components under the scheme as well as discharging water into the gravity canal.

The Chief Minister also said a plan to make Brindavan Gardens at the prestigious Krishnarajasagar dam a world-class tourist attraction will be taken up under public-private partnership.

A scheme will be implemented under public-private partnership for installing solar parks in back waters and lands owned by the Water Resources Department on the lines of Pavagada Solar Parks.

Several lift irrigation projects will be implemented at an estimated cost of Rs 7,280 crore in the current year. Irrigation potential of 97,698 hectares will be created from these projects.

In the current year, 115 works of lake development, check dam and bridge-cum-barrage at an estimated cost of Rs 200 crore will be taken up to ensure adequate supply of water for drinking purposes, agriculture and industry.

The ongoing 272 tank filling scheme under KC Valley-2nd Phase will be completed in the current year at an estimated cost of Rs 455 crore, Siddaramaiah added.

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News Network
November 13,2024

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Beirut: The Israeli army on Tuesday continued to launch attacks against civilians in Lebanon, targeting them in several areas without prior evacuation warnings.

However, 13 airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs in the space of only three hours were preceded by evacuation warnings.

The attacks caused no injuries but resulted in widespread destruction of residential buildings and commercial, medical and educational centers.

The airstrikes in southern Lebanon and Bekaa region, reaching Akkar in Lebanon’s far north, erased any hope of a near-term ceasefire settlement.

The strikes were accompanied by an announcement on Israel’s Channel 14 that “the Israeli army has expanded its operations in southern Lebanon to areas it had not reached since the beginning of the ground operation.”

About 50 days have passed since Israel intensified its hostile operations in Lebanon targeting Hezbollah. The death toll from these confrontations and attacks has passed 3,200, with more than 14,000 wounded.

For the first time, an airstrike targeted a mountainous area between Baalchmay and Aabadiyeh on the road leading to Aley, destroying a building housing displaced people.

The mayor of Baalchmay, Adham Al-Danaf, confirmed that “the airstrike targeted a residential building in the Dhour Aabadiyeh area.”

The initial toll from the Ministry of Health showed “five people killed and two injured.”

The raids that targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs for the first time in the morning, unlike nightly raids before, caused huge destruction. Those who evacuated their homes after Israeli warnings, used their phones to record the collapse of empty buildings in Sfeir, Haret Hreik, Bir Al-Abed, Mrayjeh, Laylaki and Hadath.

Israeli warplanes also targeted Tyre, where a strike on a building killed three people and injured many others, while a raid on Tefahta killed a man identified as Kifah Khalil and his family.

Attacks were widespread, with Yater and Zebqine subject to artillery shelling, a civilian being killed in Hermel, and further attacks on Bouday and an area between the towns of Srifa and Arsoun.

A raid on the town of Siddiqin killed two people and injured several others, while an attack on the Mechref farm led to one fatality and multiple injuries.

The search for those missing after an Israeli raid on the town of Ain Yaacoub in Akkar, in the northernmost part of Lebanon, continued until dawn.

During the operation, 14 bodies were retrieved, identified as those of residents displaced from the town of Arabsalim in the Iqlim Al-Tuffah area of the south, along with members of a Syrian family, a mother and three of her children. Additionally, there were 10 people in critical condition.

The targeted residence belongs to a Lebanese citizen, Hussein Hashim, who is reported to be a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party.

An airstrike on the town of Saksakiyeh in the Sidon region on Monday night resulted in yet another tragedy.

It appeared that the intended target was the Shoumer family, who just days before lost Hussein Amin Shoumer and his two sisters in a drone strike near Al-Awali River.

Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued additional evacuation warnings for towns in the southern region along the Litani River, which, according to estimates from the mayors, are currently 90 percent uninhabited.

In the meantime, Hezbollah announced its continued efforts to “combat the intrusions of Israeli forces and to strike military installations and towns in the north.”

Hezbollah said in a statement that it confronted “an Israeli Hermes 450 drone in the airspace of Nabatieh and forced it to leave Lebanese airspace.”

The party also announced that it targeted “Kfar Blum settlement with a rocket salvo.”

On the Israeli side, air raid sirens sounded in areas of Upper and Western Galilee and in the town of Kiryat Shmona and its surroundings.

The Israeli army confirmed that “a drone exploded in Nesher, east of Haifa, without activating the air raid sirens,” and that “a drone launched from Lebanon crashed into a school in Gesher HaZiv, north of Nahariya.”

Israel’s Channel 13 reported the Israeli military’s assessment regarding Hezbollah’s military strength, claiming that the group currently possesses approximately 100 precision missiles, thousands of artillery shells, and hundreds of rockets. Additionally, it was highlighted that “there are around 200 Lebanese towns that remain unvisited.”

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News Network
November 18,2024

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Mangaluru: A 14-year-old boy, Subodh, tragically lost his life after being struck by lightning while sitting outside his home in Kedila village, Bantwal taluk, on Sunday evening.

The incident occurred around 5:30 PM while Subodh, an 8th-grade student at Kalladka Shriram High School, was seated outside his house. Lightning struck him, leaving him unconscious. 

Family members rushed him to a nearby clinic and later to a private hospital in Puttur, where doctors confirmed his death upon arrival.

The boy's body was sent to Puttur Government Hospital for a post-mortem.

Tahsildar Archana Bhat has directed revenue officials to assist the grieving family. Vitla Revenue Inspector Prashanth Shetty, Village Administrative Officer Anil Kumar, Kedila Panchayat President Harish Valtaje, and panchayat members visited the family to offer their condolences and support.

This heartbreaking incident highlights the unpredictability of nature’s fury, leaving a community mourning the untimely loss of a young life.

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News Network
November 25,2024

Udupi: Six junior artists from the prequel of Kannada blockbuster film ‘Kantara’ were injured, when the bus they were travelling in overturned in the district, police said on Monday.

According to police, the accident occurred near Jadkal on Sunday night when the mini-bus carrying the crew of the film overturned.

“The incident happened while they were returning to Kollur after completing the shoot at Mudoor in Jadkal. The mini-bus was carrying 20 junior artistes when it met with the accident,” a police officer said.

The injured were rushed to hospitals in Jadkal and Kundapur for treatment, they said.

The Kollur police are investigating the matter.

"The news making rounds is completely false. The Kantara: Chapter 1 team began shooting at 06:00 AM today, and everything is proceeding as normal. A minor accident occurred 20 kilometres away from the shooting location, involving a local bus carrying some members of the Kantara team. However, no injuries were reported," a source close to the production said.

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