Seven drown as SUV plunges into lake at midnight in Hassan

January 10, 2016

Channarayapatna, Jan 10: Seven employees of Toyota Kirloskar in Bidadi, who were on a trip to religious places, died when their SUV plunged into a lake near here on Saturday.

lake
Three others in the vehicle managed to escape with injuries.

According to the police, the deceased have been identified as Karthik (26) of Kuppur village in Turuvekere taluk in Tiptur, Dilip (23) of Thimmegowdana Doddi in Bidadi, Jayanth (24) of Arechakenahalli in Maddur taluk in Mandya, Satish (25) of Nallur village in Chamarajanagar district, Shivaswamy (25) of Halagur village in Mandya district, Janardhan (24) of Machohalli in Magadi taluk and N?R?Raju (24) of Nagaranahalli in Holenarasipura taluk in Hassan district. Prasanna Kumar, Raghu and Prashanth, who managed to escape, are undergoing treatment at the Hassan district hospital.

A group of friends had recently secured jobs after completing a training programme at Kirloskar.

They hence, decided to go on a pilgrimageto Hornadu Annapoorneshwari temple in Chikkamagaluru district.

Ten of them were travelling in the SUV, a Mahindra Scorpio, while the remaining four drove in a Maruthi Swift. They started their journey from Mandya on Friday at 10.30 pm.

Prasanna was driving the SUV and around 1.30 am they were near the Janivara lake. He lost control over the vehicle at a turn and it plunged into the lake beside the road. Prasanna managed to break open the window and saved two others. Even though the other car, Swift, was just a little distance behind, they did not spot the SUV in the water.

Swamy, a Janivara villager, who was passing by, noticed the vehicle in the pond.

The Fire and Emergency Services personnel and the police took the bodies out of the pond.

“I ?don’t work with them (deceased), but we were all friends for the last three years. They would call me ‘Anna’ as I?am older than them. All of them had got jobs at Kirloskar recently. On January 6, one of the deceased and me share our birthdays. So, we planned to celebrate by visiting temples.

As it was too cold and there was thick mist, all the windows were closed and I could not see the right turn. Even though I?applied the break, the vehicle did not stop and plunged into the pond. I?broke open the window and could rescue only two of my friends,” Prasanna explained. Prasanna has sustained injuries on his hands and is undergoing treatment.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 2,2025

DKSsiddu.jpg

Bengaluru: 'Nati koli saaru' (country chicken curry) considered one of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s favourites along with steaming hot idlis was on the breakfast menu at Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s residence on Tuesday, according to official sources.

The spread also included 'nati koli' fry, vada and pongal, among other items, they said.

In an apparent show of unity, Siddaramaiah visited Shivakumar’s residence for breakfast, just days after the two leaders shared a meal amid a simmering power tussle in the state Congress.

Siddaramaiah drove to the Deputy CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar, where he was received by Shivakumar and his brother D K Suresh, who is a former Congress MP.

Suresh and Kunigal MLA H D Ranganath, a relative of Shivakumar, joined them for breakfast, which featured a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

Speaking to reporters later, Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar had invited him during his visit to the CM’s residence for breakfast on Saturday.

Asked about the difference between the two meals, the chief minister said, "At his (Shivakumar’s) house it was non-veg, while at my house it was veg. He is a vegetarian, I am a non-vegetarian. I had not prepared non-veg. I told DK to get chicken from the village as you won’t get the original in Bengaluru."

Shivakumar said he had initially invited Siddaramaiah to his residence, but the CM had suggested visiting his place first and reciprocating later. "It was a vegetarian breakfast at the CM’s house on Saturday," he noted.

"Today, I invited him (the CM) to my house. He enjoyed the breakfast, which had his Mysuru taste," Shivakumar added. At this point, Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar’s wife is also from Mysuru.

Saturday’s breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s official residence, held as part of efforts by the Congress high command to ease tensions in the leadership dispute between the two, reportedly included idlis and sambar, according to official sources.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 15,2025

Mangaluru police have arrested a 27-year-old NRI on his return from Saudi Arabia in connection with an Instagram post allegedly containing derogatory and provocative remarks about the Hindu religion, officials said on Monday.

The accused, Abdul Khader Nehad, a resident of Ulaibettu in Mangaluru, was working in Saudi Arabia when the post was uploaded, police said.

A suo motu case was registered at the Bajpe police station on October 11 after an allegedly offensive post circulated from the Instagram account ‘team_sdpi_2025’. Police said the content was flagged for being provocative and derogatory in nature.

During the investigation, technical analysis traced the Instagram post to Nehad, who was residing abroad at the time, a senior police officer said. Based on these findings, a Look Out Circular (LOC) was issued against him.

On December 14, Nehad arrived from Saudi Arabia at Calicut International Airport in Kerala, where he was taken into custody on arrival. Police said further investigation is underway.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Air India Express has announced that it will resume direct flight services between Mangaluru and Muscat from March 2026, restoring an important international air link for passengers from the coastal region.

Airport authorities said the service will operate twice a week—on Sundays and Tuesdays—from March 1. The initial flights are scheduled on March 3, 8 and 10, followed by March 15 and 17, with the same operating pattern to continue thereafter. The flight duration is approximately three hours and 25 minutes.

The Mangaluru–Muscat route was earlier operated under the 2025 summer schedule, with services beginning on July 14. At that time, Air India Express had operated four flights a week before suspending the service.

Officials said the summer schedule will come into effect from March 29, after which changes in flight timings and departure schedules from Mangaluru are expected. Passengers have been advised to check the latest schedules while planning their travel.

The resumption of direct flights to Muscat is expected to significantly benefit expatriates, business travellers and others, further strengthening Mangaluru’s air connectivity with the Gulf region.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.