KSRTC launches eco-friendly bio-diesel buses

October 3, 2015

Bengaluru, Oct 3: The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) launched a fleet of eco-friendly bio-diesel buses here on Friday.

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As many as 10 bio-buses, which will soon start plying across the City, were flagged off by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on the Vidhana Soudha premises. Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy and Chief Secretary Kaushik Mukherjee were also present at the event.

The KSRTC aims to ply 107 such buses, which will run on 20 per cent bio-diesel and 80 per cent petro-diesel (A combination of petroleum oil and diesel). Around 8,200 KSRTC buses are currently operating in Bengaluru and if these buses are run on bio-diesel, the State-run corporation can save Rs 5 per litre, officials say.

Clean fuel, lesser cost

The bio-diesel used is a clean burning renewable fuel made using natural vegetable oils and fats which will significantly reduce the fuel emission. The fuel is made through a chemical process which converts oils and fats of natural origin into fatty acid methyl esters (FAME). It can be used as a replacement for petroleum diesel fuel or can be blended with petroleum diesel fuel in any proportion.

While it is environmentally sustainable to use this fuel, it will also encourage farmers to plant vegetable crops and palm trees, along with regular food crops in a multi-cropping pattern. This will provide farmers additional income. They can also utilise barren and waste lands for cultivation and this will help farmers overcome the loss due to irregular rains to a certain extent.

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The KSRTC began trials of edible oils such as groundnut, sesame, sunflower, castor oil and non-edible oils such as pongamia, at its engine test bed from July 2003. The corporation adopted a 10 per cent blend made of vegetable oil after testing for fuel efficiency and smoke emission reduction.

In August 2005, the Doddaballapur Depot was officially converted into a bio-fuel depot with a total of 76 buses running with a fuel made of 10 per cent vegetable oil.

The state road transport undertakings in the country are collectively operating about 1.50 lakh buses and provide services to around seven crore passengers everyday, three times higher than the Indian Railways. It is estimated that 300 crore litres of diesel is being consumed every year, with about 35 per cent spent on fuel cost.

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News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

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coastaldigest.com news network
November 29,2025

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Mangaluru, Nov 29: Around 12,500 healthcare students from Medical, Dental, AYUSH, Pharmacy, Nursing, Physiotherapy and Allied Health Sciences colleges of Dakshina Kannada, affiliated to Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS), took part in a massive walkathon to promote awareness on Organ Donation and Nasha Mukth Bharat.

The inaugural ceremony was held at Mangala Stadium. Dr Bhagavan B C, Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor of RGUHS, delivered the welcome address. The walkathon was flagged off by Shri U T Khader, Hon’ble Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, and presided over by Shri Dinesh Gundu Rao, Hon’ble Minister for Health, Family Welfare and Dakshina Kannada District In-charge. Dakshina Kannada MP Shri Brijesh Chowta also addressed the students.

Music director Guru Kiran, MLA Dr Bharat Shetty (Mangalore North), Police Commissioner Shri Sudheer Kumar Reddy, Shri Manjunath Bhandary and Shri Harish Kumar were among those present.

Institution heads including Dr Haji U K Monu (Kanachur Colleges), Dr Shantharam Shetty (Tejaswini College), Dr Bhaskar Shetty (City Group of Colleges), Mr Abdul Rahiman (Kanachur Institute of Medical Sciences), and the District Health Officer, Mangalore, also participated.

The vote of thanks was delivered by Prof U T Ifthikar Fareed, Syndicate Member, RGUHS.

The event was organised by Dr U T Ifthikar Ali and Dr Shiva Sharan (Syndicate Members), Prof Vaishali (Senate Member), Prof Mohammad Suhail (Chairman, BOS Physiotherapy), Dr Sharan Shetty (Former Senate Member), along with principals and faculty of various colleges.

Students marched from Mangala Stadium to Karavali Grounds via MCC and Lalbagh signal. The event set a record as one of the largest gatherings of healthcare students for a social cause in the RGUHS Dakshina Kannada Zone.

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News Network
December 3,2025

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Mangaluru, Dec 3: A group of Congress workers gathered at the Mangaluru International Airport on Wednesday to welcome AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, but the reception quickly turned into a display of support for Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.

Venugopal arrived in the city to participate in the centenary commemoration of the historic dialogue between Mahatma Gandhi and Narayana Guru. The event, organised by the Sivagiri Mutt, Varkala, in association with the Mangalore University Sri Narayana Guru Study Chair, is being held on the university’s Konaje campus.

KPCC general secretary Mithun Rai and several party workers had assembled at the airport to receive Venugopal. However, the moment he stepped out, workers began raising slogans backing Shivakumar.

The university programme will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

This show of support comes just a day after Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar would lead the government “when the high command decides.” The chief minister made the comment after a breakfast meeting at Shivakumar’s residence—another public display of camaraderie between the two leaders amid ongoing attempts by the party high command to downplay their leadership rivalry.

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