Open to CBI probe into Kalburgi murder: CM Siddaramaiah

New Delhi, Dec 3: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday said the State government was open order a CBI probe into the murder of scholar M M Kalburgi.

“If family members of Kalburgi demand CBI probe, we are ready to order it without any delay”, he told reporters. The chief minister was here to meet the party top brass to finalise the Congress candidates for Council polls in Karnataka

"The government ordered for the CID probe after the family members did not show any inclination for the CBI probe" he said. Despite CBI conducting probe into the murder of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare in Maharashtra, the central agency failed to make any breakthrough, he added.

Dismissing allegations made by BJP state unit president Pralhad Joshi that the CID of the Karnataka government had stopped probing Kalburgi murder case due to fund crunch, the chief minister said the probe was under progress and the government was confident that the CID will make a breakthrough soon.

Council polls

The chief minister said he would finalise the party candidates list for the upcoming Council polls after discussing the issue with Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday. Siddaramaiah along with party state unit president G Parameshwara held a meeting with Karnataka incharge General Secretary Digvijay Singh on Wednesday. The list has been submitted to Digvijay Singh. It will be finalised on Thursday,” he said.

‘Murders’ not connected’

Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said, “There is no report to suggest any linkage/connection between the recent murders of Govind Pansare, Narendra Dabholkar and M M Kalburgi.”

He said there is no proposal to ban Santhan Sanstha, whose member was arrested in connection with Pansare’s murder.

“The activities of all organisations having a bearing on the maintenance of peace and harmony in the country are under constant watch of law enforcement agencies. At present, there is no proposal to ban the Santhan Sanstha, he said. The Sanstha has admitted that the arrested person was its member but denied its involvement in the murder.

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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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