Harekala Hajabba receives Padma Shri Award at Rashtrapati Bhawan

coastaldigest.com news network
November 8, 2021

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New Delhi, Nov 8: Harekala Hajabba, the real life hero of coastal Karnataka, today formally received the Padma Shri Award 2020.

President Ramanath Kovind conferred the prestigious honour at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah among others.

Hajabba, the orange seller who saved money to build a school in his village, was declared the recipient of one of the highest civilian honours of India on January 25, 2020. Hajabba received a letter intimating that the certificate signed by the President will be presented to him in March, but the ceremony was delayed due to the pandemic.

“I have been in touch with the office of the Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel to make necessary arrangements for my travel to New Delhi for the ceremony. I will preserve this prestigious honour bestowed on me in my house along with other awards, mementos and certificates that I received from more than 500 organisations,” he said.

Hajabba, 65, an illiterate fruit vendor who is popularly known as ‘Akshara Santa’ (Saint of Letters), was successful in building a school to educate children of his village in New Padpu, Harekala, located about 35 km from Mangaluru city. Deeply pained that he could not study as his village did not have a school, he took it up as a challenge and his journey towards building a school in Harekala began in 1995. 

He left no stone unturned to get land for the school and for approval from the education department. His dream turned into reality when Dakshina Kannada zilla panchayat sanctioned a school in 1999.

Initially, Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Lower Primary School popular as ‘Hajabba avara Shale’ (Hajabba’s school) was functioning in a mosque. Later, Hajabba built classrooms for the school on 40 cents of land sanctioned by the district administration.

Comments

ummar
 - 
Monday, 8 Nov 2021

I really appreciate him. He is the real hero of the KARNATAKA

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News Network
November 22,2025

Mangaluru: Police Commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy C H has warned of strict action against individuals spreading rumours and attempting to create insecurity within the Muslim community and fuel hatred between Hindus and Muslims through social media.

Referring to a recent social media post alleging that police personnel had entered a masjid premises to check whether beef was being cooked, the commissioner said miscreants were attempting to push their communal agenda. 

“A group of people, both from Mangaluru and abroad, are trying hard to spread rumours. For the past 10 days, they have been attempting to rake up old issues, highlight routine matters as controversies, or fabricate news altogether,” he said.

He reiterated that any such attempts to disturb communal harmony would invite legal action. “Cases will be registered and the accused will be brought to book,” he stated.

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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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News Network
December 2,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 2: Mangaluru International Airport responded to a medical emergency late on Monday night. Air India Express flight IX 522, travelling from Riyadh to Thiruvananthapuram, was diverted to Mangaluru Airport after a passenger in his late 30s experienced a medical emergency on board.

The Airport’s Operations Control Centre received an alert regarding the passenger’s health condition. The airport activated its emergency response protocol, mobilising the airport medical team and coordinating with stakeholders including CISF, immigration, and customs. 

Upon landing, airport medical personnel attended to the passenger, assessed his condition, and arranged to shift him to a local tertiary-care hospital for further treatment. The passenger’s relatives accompanied the passenger, who incidentally received necessary medical care on board, which helped stabilise the situation.

Following the handling of the emergency, the flight departed for Thiruvananthapuram at 2:05 am on Tuesday.

"We appreciate the cooperation of all parties involved, and this incident reaffirms our ongoing commitment to prioritising passenger safety and readiness to respond to unforeseen emergencies with professionalism and care," the Airport spokesperson said. 

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