Measurers to prevent lightning damage urged

[email protected] (CD Network)
November 8, 2011

Mangalore, November 9: The need for steps to prevent damage resulting from lightning dominated the quarterly meeting to review development programmes in Mangalore taluk on Monday.

MLA Abhayachandra Jain said lightning had caused loss of life and damaged many electrical appliances in several houses in the region. Lightning had damaged crops, especially the coconut and areca palms, he said.

“This cannot be treated just as a natural calamity. Steps need to be taken to reduce the effect of lightning,” he said.

Moodbidri tahsildar K. Muralidhar said six persons had died because of lightning in Mangalore taluk and Moodbidri so far. The State government had paid a compensation of Rs. 1 lakh to each of the family of the victims under the National Calamity Fund. With regard to loss to agriculture crops, the government had paid Rs. 7,464 in Mangalore taluk, and Rs. 3,660 in Moodbidri. “The compensation is paid only in the case where the crop loss was in 50 cents or more area,” he said.

Mr. Muralidhar said three houses had been completely damaged while 141 houses had been partially damaged in Mangalore taluk. The government had paid compensation of about Rs. 3 lakh. Similarly, in Moodbidri taluk, there had been 30 cases of total and partial damage of house and compensation of Rs. 81,000 had been paid.

Mr. Muralidhar said to a large extent, the damage had been of electrical lines and connections, which, he said, could not be compensated. “We cannot pay for the damage to electrical lines and connections in houses,” he said. Mr. Jain said the taluk administration should place before the State government the need for steps to prevent damage because of lightning. The issue of erratic power supply was taken up.

MLA U.T. Khader took a Mangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited's executive to task for erratic power supply in the taluk. “There was repeated unscheduled power shutdown during this festival season. Why was no information given to people?” he said.

When the official said it was because of lightning, Mr. Khader said: “Then why was there power shutdown yesterday and day before yesterday. Was there any lightning?” he said. “I get calls when there is no power supply,” he said.

When Mr. Khader found that the official was too junior to answer him, Mr. Khader turned his attention to Executive Officer of Mangalore Taluk Panchayat Vishwanatha Poojary and sought to know as to why the Mescom Executive Engineer was not present in the meeting.

Mr. Jain said Mescom could not resort to unscheduled power shutdown under the guise of lightning.

Mr. Khader took objection to the new directive of the State government earmarking to Escoms 60 per cent of Rs. 8 lakh development fund given to gram panchayats. The remaining 40 per cent of the fund had been earmarked for payment of salaries of the panchayat officials.

“What development work can the panchyat up?” he said. When an official said the panchayats had to generate their income, Mr. Khader said “Where are the resources for panchayats to generate income?”

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News Network
May 3,2024

Bengaluru: In a fresh development in the alleged Hassan sex abuse case, JD(S) MLA H D Revanna, who was accused of sexually harassing his house help, has been booked for kidnapping a victim allegedly sexually assaulted by his son, Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna. The case was filed late Thursday evening at the KR Nagar police station in Mysuru.

The 20-year-old complainant from KR Nagara accused one Sathish Babanna of taking his mother away forcibly and keeping her in an unknown location at the behest of Revanna.

As per the FIR, Revanna has been named as accused 1 while Babanna was accused 2. The duo were booked under IPC Sections 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 365 (kidnapping or abducting with intent secretly and wrongfully to confine a person) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

The complainant claimed that his mother, whose name and age were not revealed, had worked as a help in Revanna’s house and farm in Holenarasipura for six years, quit the job three years ago and returned to KR Nagara. She then worked for daily wages.

“Nearly three to four days before the Lok Sabha election, Sathish Babanna, who is known to us and hailed from our native place, took my mother to Holenarasipura after saying that Bhavani Revanna, the wife of MLA Revanna, had asked for her,” the complainant alleged, adding that Babanna dropped her back on the day of the polls.

Babanna allegedly told the victim’s mother and father to remain silent and evade the police if they came looking for them and to inform him of the developments.

On April 29, at around 9 pm, when the complainant was home, the suspect Babanna arrived, told the complainant’s mother that Revanna had asked for her and took her away on his motorcycle. The complainant claimed that he wasn’t aware of where Babanna took his mother and he had told him that if the police found her, a case would be registered and they would all go to jail.

On May 1, two of the complainant’s relatives called him on the phone and told him that there was a video of his mother being sexually assaulted by Prajwal and that it was a huge case, the FIR noted. He was also informed by his two friends of his "mother's videos being circulated".

When he asked Babanna later that night, he was allegedly told that there was a photo of his mother standing with a stick when Prajwal had quarrelled with someone earlier and an FIR had been registered. Babanna told the complainant that his mother would have to be released on bail, the FIR noted.

“Babanna told me not to speak on the matter on my phone and asked me to talk from a different phone,” he said, seeking action from the police.

The case has been transferred to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up to probe the Hassan sex scandal as per the government order.

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News Network
May 7,2024

Mangaluru: Former MLC Ivan D’Souza on Monday led a delegation to the Passport Seva Kendra in Mangaluru, urging the authorities to provide basic facilities for applicants. D’Souza addressed the media, highlighting the lack of essential amenities at the Mangaluru PSK. “I have requested the authorities to provide basic facilities for people visiting the PSK.

There are no chairs for the convenience of people who arrive at the PSK. They are forced to sit or stand by the side of the road or on footpaths. Additionally, there is no parking facility, no washrooms, and water has not been provided for the public,” the Congress leader stated.

An average of 500 to 600 people from various parts of the state visit the PSK. They have to wait in the scorching heat of the sun, D’Souza mentioned, urging the govt to address these issues promptly. “Officials have agreed to find solutions to the problems faced by the people. Meanwhile, we have also demanded that the PSK be relocated to a more convenient space. We have suggested that the PSK could be moved to the old DC’s office, where there is sufficient space. If our demands are not met, we will hold a protest,” D’Souza explained.

Ashraf Kinara, vice-president of the Dakshina Kannada Waqf Advisory Committee, echoed the sentiment, stating that the authorities should either provide all basic facilities for passport applicants at the PSK or relocate the centre to a better location.

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News Network
May 7,2024

prajwa.jpg

The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) on Monday responded to Karnataka’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) regarding a blue corner notice issued against JDS MP Prajwal Revanna.

In its response, Interpol said that all 196 member countries were alerted to identify and report if Prajwal Revanna is spotted at any port in their jurisdiction.

The Karnataka government issued a Blue Corner Notice on Sunday against Prajwal Revanna, who is facing allegations of sexual abuse by his staff members.

A Blue Corner Notice is issued by the international police cooperation body to collect additional information from its member countries about a person’s identity, location or activities about a crime.

The notice was issued after the 33-year-old Hassan MP reportedly flew to Germany soon after the Karnataka State Commission for Women chairperson Nagalakshmi Chowdhary wrote to the CM to order a probe into the sexual allegations against Prajwal.

Last week, the anticipatory bail application of Prajwal Revanna was also denied by Justice Santosh Gajanana Bhat’s bench of People’s Representative Court in Bengaluru.

Earlier, his MLA father and son of former Prime Minster HD Deve Gowda, HD Revanna was remanded to Karnataka SIT custody in a kidnapping-related sex scandal case.

His arrest came after the kidnapped victim was rescued from Revanna’s close assistant Rajasekhar’s farmhouse in Kalenahalli, Hunsur Taluk after the SIT conducted the rescue operation to find her, the police said.

The abduction case was filed by the son of a woman who worked at the Revannas’ house for nearly five years. He alleged that his mother was kidnapped from her home on April 29 by Satish Babanna a relative of Revanna.

The Karnataka Sex Scandal case pertains to explicit video clips allegedly involving the 33-year-old Prajwal, grandson of JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, which went viral on social media.

Those videos began to make rounds in Hassan in recent days, following which the state government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the sexual abuse allegations against the MP.

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