Ready to give befitting reply to anti-pankti bheda activists: VHP

October 17, 2016

Mangaluru, Oct 17: Vishwa Hindu Parishat (VHP) has warned the anti-pankti bheda activists of dire consequences if tried to cause any harm to Sri Krishna Mutt in Udupi under the pretext of ending casteist traditions.

VHP Karnataka Zone President M.B. Puranik said it was highly deplorable to hear comments by social activists demeaning Vishwesha Tirtha Swami, who has been striving for communal harmony and equality. Over the past 45 years, the seer has been visiting the homes of people from socially backward communities and giving them Vaishnava Deekshe.

Mr. Puranik said organisers of “Udupi Chalo” should tender an unconditional apology for comments made against the seer during the programme held on October 9. If the organisers go ahead with the proposed siege of the mutt, VHP will give a fitting reply, he said.

Addressing the “Udupi Chalo” programme on October 9, social activist and “Chalo Una” organiser Jignesh Mevani gave a deadline of two months for the Udupi mutts to stop the practice of pankti bedha.

Mr. Mevani had said activists will lay siege to the mutt if the practice does not stop. Questing the activists' allegations, Pejawar mutt seer said on Thursday that all communities were being served food in Udupi without discrimination. The seer threatened to go on an indefinite fast if activists tried to lay siege to the mutt.

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Don't use Muslims for it...to safe guard your throne.....

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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