DKS, Siddaramaiah, other Cong leaders detained at protest seeking KSE’s ouster

News Network

April 14, 2022

Bengaluru, Apr 14: Congress leaders D K Shivakumar, Siddaramaiah, and others were detained as Bengaluru Police stopped them from marching towards CM Basavaraj Bommai's residence demanding the removal of Karnataka Minister K S Eshwarappa in connection with contractor Santosh Patil's death.

Earlier today, Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai said that any action would be taken only after the post-mortem examination report of Belagavi contractor Santosh Patil.

"Post-mortem was done yesterday and now preliminary inquiry(report) will come and based on that we'll proceed," he said.

Speculations were rife that the party could ask Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj KS Eshwarappa to resign in the aftermath of Patil's death after the Opposition created a furore to sack him.

Patil had named Eshwarappa in his alleged suicide note as being responsible for his death. The contractor had, a few weeks ago, accused Eshwarappa of charging a 40 per cent commission in completion of pending public works.

Speaking on the Opposition protesting, Bommai called Congress a "Gangotri of corruption". "Congress doesn't have any moral right to protest. Congress is a Gangotri of corruption," the chief minister said.

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RuTAGe smart village centres in DK, Udupi to being technology closer to rural communities

News Network

January 20,2026

Mangaluru: In a major step towards strengthening rural innovation, the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India is supporting the establishment of RuTAGe Smart Village Centres (RSVCs) across the country through collaborations with academic institutions, civil society organisations and philanthropic partners.

As part of this national initiative, Nitte (Deemed to be University) will set up the first RSVCs in the region at Nitte GP in Udupi district and at the Nitte Health Centre, Sevanjali Trust, Farangipete, in Dakshina Kannada district. The centres will be inaugurated on January 21. In South India, the programme is being implemented by the Section Infin-8 Foundation (SI-8).

Speaking to reporters on Monday, SI-8 founder-director Vishwas US said experts from Nitte University and SI-8 would work closely with farmers, students, youth and local entrepreneurs to adapt and deploy technologies tailored to local needs.

Project head Prof Iddya Karunasagar, representing Nitte DU, said the RSVCs at Nitte and Farangipete would serve as demonstration hubs for a wide range of agriculture, energy, skill-development and assistive technologies. These include solar dryers for fruits, vegetables and crops; soil-testing solutions; power weeders and women-friendly farm tools; wind-powered devices for rural artisans; grain storage systems; grass-cutting and tree-climbing equipment; and liquid fertiliser production using cowshed waste.

SI-8 CEO Aravind C Kumar said the centres would also provide access to digital and knowledge-based platforms such as ISRO applications, government scheme portals, market linkage tools and gamified learning resources, along with assistive technologies for persons with visual impairments.

Highlighting the broader impact of the initiative, Principal Scientific Adviser Prof Ajay Kumar Sood said it demonstrated how applied research could bridge the rural–urban divide and help create self-reliant, technology-enabled villages.

The initiative has been made possible through philanthropic support from Dr NC Murthy of ACM Business Solutions, LLC, USA. Dr Sapna Poti, Director (Strategic Alliances) at the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser, said the long-term objective is to build self-sufficient, technology-driven communities capable of generating sustainable livelihoods on their own.

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