Governor's address devoid of anything new: Oppn JDS, BJP

June 3, 2013

Bangalore, Jun 3: The opposition JDS and BJP today slammed Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj's address to the joint session of the state legislature, saying it was devoid of any new programme and policy and lacked direction.

Leader of Opposition H D Kumaraswamy said while the Governor mentioned about scams and corruption cases in the last few years, he, in fact, had lavishly praised the BJP government during the customary exercise in the previous three years.

The government has not spelt out any new programme, the JDS leader said. "There is no direction, no clarity."

BJP floor leader and former chief minister Jagadish Shettar said the new government has not announced any new programme. "Several points are from our budget (presented by the previous BJP government)," he said.

On government announcement that it would formulate necessary regulations within three months for establishing a separate development board for six backward districts in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, Shettar said there was no need to take so much time to do that, and it should be done immediately.

He criticised the government for announcing the ban on gutka without taking care of the interests of arecanut growers and confidence of the legislature.

Shettar pointed out that Karnataka accounts for about 60 per cent of the country's arecanut production, while other states which have banned gutka are largely consumers; not producers of arecanut.

"The government should have first protected the interests of arecanut farmers. When the Assembly session is progress, the government should have announced the decision in the House, where the pros and cons could have been discussed," the BJP leader said.

A view of Joint Session at the Vidhana Soudha in Bangalore on Monday

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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