Bengaluru: Couple held for hoax bomb call that delayed Air Asia flight

February 10, 2017

Bengaluru, Feb 10: A couple were arrested by the Bengaluru International Airport police in the early hours of Thursday in connection with a hoax call made to the Kempegowda International Airport to delay the take off of a Cochin-bound AirAsia flight. The flight was delayed by over six hours. Police said that they have detained Neha Gopinathan and Arjun, natives of Kerala who resided at the BTM Layout in South-East Bengaluru.

The duo were detained after investigations showed that all the other 180 passengers had boarded the flight on time and the couple had enquired several times over phone about the flight, stating that they were running late to reach the airport due to a problem with their taxi.

N Shivakumara, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) said that the police was informed about the threat call. “It was later confirmed that it was hoax and we have detained Neha and Arjun,” he said. The couple said they needed to be in their village near Cochin on Thursday morning since their engagement was scheduled in the morning.

Police said that one of their relatives called the airport from a public telephone booth in Cochin around 8.31 pm on Wednesday and claimed that there were explosives in the AirAsia flight to Cochin. The flight was scheduled to take-off by 8.45 pm but the operation was suspended on account of the hoax call. The explosive detection and disposal squad rushed to the scene and checked the flight and baggage of all the passengers till 1.30 am before the call was deemed a hoax. The flight finally took off from the Bengaluru airport around 3.30 am on Thursday.

Police said the couple are working as instructors at a private teaching academy and their engagement was scheduled for Thursday. They came to know that they can't reach their destination in time for their engagement, they informed the same to their relatives, who planned the hoax call to ensure delay of the flight. A police team may be dispatched to Kerala if the couple fail to reveal who exactly made the hoax call. A case has been registered and further probe is underway.

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Before booking IPC on accused give a tight slap....

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Mangaluru’s ₹1,200 crore fix: Massive sewage overhaul to end city’s drainage woes

News Network

December 19,2025

Mangaluru: In a decisive move to tackle the city’s deteriorating sanitation infrastructure, the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) has announced a massive ₹1,200 crore action plan to overhaul its underground drainage (UGD) network.

The initiative, spearheaded by Deputy Commissioner and MCC Administrator Darshan HV, aims to bridge "missing links" in the current system that have left residents grappling with overflowing sewage and environmental hazards.

The Breaking Point

The announcement follows a high-intensity phone-in session on Thursday, where the DC was flooded with grievances from frustrated citizens. Residents, including Savithri from Yekkur, described a harrowing reality: raw sewage from apartments leaking into stormwater drains, creating a "permanent stink" and turning residential zones into mosquito breeding grounds.

"We are facing immense difficulties due to the stench and the health risks. Local officials have remained silent until now," one resident reported during the session.

The Strategy: A Six-Year Vision

DC Darshan HV confirmed that the proposed plan is not a temporary patch but a comprehensive six-year roadmap designed to accommodate Mangaluru’s projected population growth. Key highlights of the plan include:

• Infrastructure Expansion: Laying additional pipelines to connect older neighborhoods to the main grid.

• STP Crackdown: Stricter enforcement of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) regulations. While new apartments are required to have functional STPs, many older buildings lack them entirely, and several newer units are reportedly non-functional.

• Budgetary Push: The plan has already been discussed with the district in-charge minister and the Secretary of the Urban Development Department. It is slated for formal presentation in the upcoming state budget.

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