Coastal Karnataka readies for Ganesh Chaturthi revelry

August 31, 2011

Mangalore, August 31: With only a few hours to go for the arrival of Ganesha, in the Hindu households, the preparations for the annual Ganesh Chaturthi, also known as 'Vinayak Chaturthi' or 'Vinayaka Chavthi festival, have reached their peak.

Although Ganesh Chaturthi festival commences on the fourth day of the Hindu month of Bhadrapada, it begins a day earlier with married woman worshipping Gauri or Parvati, the mother of Ganesha.

A walk round the city revealed market thronged by festival shoppers, buying various festival linked items from pulses and cereals to vegetables, fruits and sugarcanes, to decorative items and fireworks.

Despite soaring prices of essential commodities and various difficulties arising in the day-to-day life, the devotees are seen to be eagerly waiting for the arrival of the deity.

Setting a joyous and celebration mood everywhere, the Ganapathi idol makers at some of the places in the city like Car Street and Mannagudda too are carrying out their task of Ganesha idol preparation in a full swing.

The idols of Ganesha in various avatars line up on the main streets well ahead of the Ganesh Chaturthi, enabling the buyers to choose according to their wish.

Prabhakar Rao from Mannagudda who belongs to the famous idol making family of Late Mohan Rao said that he has received hundreds of orders for Ganesh idol preparation this year. “It is for the 74th year that our family is preparing Ganapathi idols. We design idols for Sanghaniketan, NMPT, Horticulture Department, KMF and MCF among others. The whole family is involved in this idol making process since two months and we do it with devotion, keeping aside the profit motive,” says Prabhakar Rao.

Special elaborate meals are prepared on the occasion, along with traditional sweetmeats like payasam, obbattu, kadubu, sweetened milk of coconut and so on.

Music also forms an integral part of the celebrations with aartis or songs of praise of the deity sung by the devotees during the worship. Bhaktigeetas or devotional songs, too are sung before Ganesha, with the accompaniment of musical instruments.

Sarvajanik or community Ganeshotsavas currently is working round the clock to present the respective Ganeshotsava pandals, in the most impressive way.

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Who is Ramachandra Rao? Karnataka DGP, actress Ranya’s stepfather suspended over viral ‘obscene’ video

News Network

January 20,2026

Karnataka DGP (Civil Rights Enforcement) K Ramachandra Rao was suspended with immediate effect, as per a state government order issued on Monday, 19 January. The order cited conduct unbecoming of a government servant and causing embarrassment to the state administration.

The Karnataka government suspended Rao after a purported video showed him in a compromising position with a woman inside his official chamber. The video went viral on social media. Rao rejected the videos outright, terming them "fabricated and false".

Who is K Ramachandra Rao?

Rao is a DGP-rank officer who was heading the Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement until his suspension. He was promoted to DGP in September 2023 and assumed office in October 2023, the Sunday Guardian reported.

He also served as the Chairman and Managing Director of the Karnataka State Police Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited.

His stint as the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for the Southern Range was also marred by controversy. In 2014, during a cash seizure near Mysuru’s Yelwal, officials claimed the seized amount was ₹20 lakh, while the accused (Kerala-based merchants) claimed it was around ₹2.27 crore.

Rao, who was present during the seizure, denied all allegations. However, he was transferred soon after.

Allegations of collusion with a businessman surfaced, and a senior police officer was quoted by The Sunday Guardian as saying, “In Rao’s case, the CID has clearly mentioned that there was a great degree of lapse on the part of Rao and a deputy superintendent of police after it was brought to their notice that a few policemen, including a gunman attached to the IGP, were involved in the robbery.”

Rao had denied all wrongdoing in that incident. Despite past controversies, he rose to the state’s top police position, the Sunday Guardian reported.

Ranya Rao’s stepfather

Rao is the stepfather of Kannada actress Harshavardhini Ranya alias Ranya Rao, accused of orchestrating the illegal import of gold worth over ₹12.56 crore from Dubai to India along with two others — businessman Tarun Raju, and jewellery dealer Sahil Jain.

‘Obscene video’ controversy

A viral video showed Rao behaving inappropriately with a woman inside his office while in uniform.

The Karnataka government said in its Monday order that “vide videos and news reports widely broadcast on public news channels and media platforms, it is observed that Dr K Ramachandra Rao has acted in an obscene manner which is unbecoming of a Government Servant and also causing embarrassment to the Government.”

The order said the matter was examined by the state government, which found that the officer's conduct amounted to a violation of Rule 3 of the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968.

The government said it is prima facie satisfied that "it is necessary to place Rao under suspension with immediate effect, pending inquiry".

During the suspension period, Rao will be entitled to subsistence allowance as per Rule 4 of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969.

The order also places restrictions on his movement, stating that during the period of suspension, the officer must not leave headquarters under any circumstances without the written permission of the state government.

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