Hundreds of acres of land secretly given to RSS, affiliates by BJP govt to be reviewed: Dinesh Gundu Rao

News Network
June 9, 2023

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Bengaluru, June 9: The Karnataka government will review the largesse of the previous BJP government in allotting "hundreds of acres of land" to RSS and its affiliated organisations, Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said on Friday. He also said a few tenders issued by the BJP government have been cancelled while others will be looked into.

The functioning of the health and family welfare department, its officers and doctors and the measures taken to ensure sound public health will be discussed in a meeting next week, Rao added. "Hundreds of acres of government land in the state have been transferred in the name of RSS and Sangh Parivar affiliated organisations," the minister said in a press conference. 

According to him, the purpose behind such allotment was to help these organisations grow and with that its ideologies should also grow. "This (allotment of land) should not happen. One should inform everything to the people. Nothing should be kept secret. People should know. Taking everything in one way is not proper. So we have to take steps," the minister added.

When asked whether the government has taken any steps yet, Rao said he cannot say anything about the steps taken at this juncture but he pointed out that the Congress government has to do it. "It should happen at the government level where the revenue department and the chief minister have to see what has happened and how it has happened. They have to decide after seeing whether it has been done lawfully and for what price it has been allotted because these are all legal matters," he explained.

To a question about the BJP claiming that there is a witch hunt against its cadres, Rao alleged that the objective of that party was to meddle with history, create a rift among people, and spread hatred, which they were doing at every level, be it in textbooks, or appointing such people in various organisations and allotting government land to RSS and its affiliated organisations.

The minister also said that he has convened a meeting where many decisions will be taken. He added that the Congress government cancelled a few tenders such as the 108 ambulance tender and the dialysis contract.

"There are other issues as well, such as the functioning of our department, officers and doctors and taking care of public health. Preventive measures will also be looked into," Rao said. He also explained that some policy matters related to his department will be discussed with the experts to improve the existing system to provide quality treatment to people.

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News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

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News Network
December 7,2025

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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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News Network
December 2,2025

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Bengaluru: 'Nati koli saaru' (country chicken curry) considered one of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s favourites along with steaming hot idlis was on the breakfast menu at Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s residence on Tuesday, according to official sources.

The spread also included 'nati koli' fry, vada and pongal, among other items, they said.

In an apparent show of unity, Siddaramaiah visited Shivakumar’s residence for breakfast, just days after the two leaders shared a meal amid a simmering power tussle in the state Congress.

Siddaramaiah drove to the Deputy CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar, where he was received by Shivakumar and his brother D K Suresh, who is a former Congress MP.

Suresh and Kunigal MLA H D Ranganath, a relative of Shivakumar, joined them for breakfast, which featured a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

Speaking to reporters later, Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar had invited him during his visit to the CM’s residence for breakfast on Saturday.

Asked about the difference between the two meals, the chief minister said, "At his (Shivakumar’s) house it was non-veg, while at my house it was veg. He is a vegetarian, I am a non-vegetarian. I had not prepared non-veg. I told DK to get chicken from the village as you won’t get the original in Bengaluru."

Shivakumar said he had initially invited Siddaramaiah to his residence, but the CM had suggested visiting his place first and reciprocating later. "It was a vegetarian breakfast at the CM’s house on Saturday," he noted.

"Today, I invited him (the CM) to my house. He enjoyed the breakfast, which had his Mysuru taste," Shivakumar added. At this point, Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar’s wife is also from Mysuru.

Saturday’s breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s official residence, held as part of efforts by the Congress high command to ease tensions in the leadership dispute between the two, reportedly included idlis and sambar, according to official sources.

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