Father, daughter crushed to death by lorry

Mangalore, November 12: A college girl and her father were killed in a horrific road crash involving a Honda Activa and a lorry near Yekkur Gorigudda in the city on Saturday morning.

The victims are Ramesh Alape (40), who was riding the ill-fated Honda Activa, and his 18-year-old daughter Sushmitha, who was riding pillion.

While Sushmitha, a second-semester B A student in St Agnes College, Mangalore, died on spot after being crushed under the wheels of lorry, her father succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital in city.

The speeding lorry knocked down the Honda Activa, in which the victims were travelling, at around 8:00 am, when the vehicular movement on the road was very less.

It is learnt that Ramesh was supposed to drop her daughter to an MCC camp, where other students were waiting for her in the morning.

According to local sources, rash driving by the driver of the lorry bearing registration number KA 19 U 8740 was the reason behind the accident.

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Mangaluru’s KPT becomes India’s first autonomous govt polytechnic

News Network

January 23,2026

Mangaluru: The Karnataka Government Polytechnic (KPT), Mangaluru, has achieved autonomous status from the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), becoming the first government polytechnic in the country to receive such recognition in its 78-year history. The status was granted by AICTE, New Delhi, and subsequently approved by the Karnataka Board of Technical Education in October last year.

Officials said the autonomy was conferred a few months ago. Until recently, AICTE extended autonomous status only to engineering colleges, excluding diploma institutions. However, with a renewed national focus on skill development, several government polytechnics across India have now been granted autonomy.

KPT, the second-largest polytechnic in Karnataka, was established in 1946 with four branches and has since expanded to offer eight diploma programmes, including computer science and polymer technology. The institution is spread across a 19-acre campus.

Ravindra M Keni, the first dean of the institution, told The Times of India that AICTE had proposed autonomous status for polytechnic institutions that are over 25 years old. “Many colleges applied. In the first round, 100 institutions were shortlisted, which was further narrowed down to 15 in the second round. We have already completed one semester after becoming an autonomous institution,” he said. He added that nearly 500 students are admitted annually across eight three-year diploma courses.

Explaining the factors that helped KPT secure autonomy, Keni said the institution has consistently recorded 100 per cent admissions and placements for its graduates. He also noted its strong performance in sports, with the college emerging champions for 12 consecutive years, along with active student participation in NCC and NSS activities.

Autonomous status allows KPT to design industry-oriented curricula, conduct examinations, prepare question papers, and manage academic documentation independently. The institution can also directly collaborate with industries and receive priority funding from AICTE or the Ministry of Education. While academic autonomy has been granted, financial control will continue to rest with the state government.

“There will be separate committees for examinations, question paper setting, boards of studies, and boards of examiners. The institution will now have the freedom to conduct admissions without government notifications and issue its own marks cards,” Keni said, adding that new academic initiatives would be planned after a year of functioning under the autonomous framework.

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