Karnataka Unlock: What's allowed, what's not in 19 districts after June 14

News Network
June 10, 2021

Bengaluru, June 10: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Thursday unveiled an unlock plan that will kick in from June 14 in 19 districts where some relaxations have been given, but 11 districts with a high Covid-19 positivity rate will remain under lockdown sans concessions.

The government has brought back night curfews everyday and during weekends to keep a check on the spread of the infection.

The daily curfews will be in place from 7 pm till 5 am, whereas on weekends, it will start at 7 pm Friday till 5 am Monday. The curfews will be applicable in all the districts.

Keeping in mind livelihoods and the economy, the government has allowed auto rickshaws and cabs to ply till 7 pm whereas, all industries have been allowed to resume operations with 50 per cent staff.

Citizens can shop for essentials and alcohol from 6 am till 2 pm and this includes street vendors.

There are no restrictions on inter-district travel, Yediyurappa specified. 

Construction activities and related shops - cement and steel - will be permitted to function. Government offices will continue to function with a strength of 50 per cent, Yediyurappa added. 

"This has been done based on the recommendations of the technical advisory committee," Yediyurappa said. "We will be able to provide more relaxation if the pandemic situation comes under more control."

According to Revenue Minister R Ashoka, this unlock plan was designed to help auto/cab drivers and provide relief to industries. "This is a mini-lockdown," he said.

However, 11 districts including Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Davanagere, Mysuru, Chamarjanagar, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Bengaluru Rural, Kodagu, Mandya and Belagavi will remain under a lockdown until June 21 with no relaxations. "The deputy commissioners and ministers in charge will have the liberty to take additional measures in these districts," Yediyurappa said.

Earlier, the government said it will unlock only those districts where the positivity rate is below 5 per cent. However, this was not the sole criterion because districts that will unlock continue to have a positivity rate above 5 per cent. "We took an average of many factors - positivity rate, active cases, recoveries, the situation in the neighbouring districts and local factors," Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwath Narayan, the Covid-19 Task Force chairperson, said.

Earlier in the day, Yediyurappa reviewed eight districts with a high positivity rate. In Chikmagalur, for example, Yediyurappa found the rate to be 25 per cent with an average of only 6.1 contacts of an infected person traced.

Yediyurappa also expressed concern over higher caseload in rural areas than in urban centres of seven of the eight districts, with Mysuru being an exception.

Highlights

* Essential shops and liquor shops open from 6 am to 2 pm.

* Parks to be open from 5 am to 10 am.

* Autos, taxis permitted with maximum 2 passengers till 7 pm. No buses.

* Curfew between 7 pm and 5 am on weekdays.

* Weekend curfew to start 7 pm on Friday until 5 am on Monday.

* No prohibition on inter-district travel.

* Industries will function with 50% strength, garment factories at 30%.

* Construction activities can resume.

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News Network
March 27,2024

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Bengaluru: Darshan Babu is an engineer who is fond of betting on cricket matches and has been placing major bets on Indian Premier League (IPL) games since 2021. He often borrows money after losing a bet, or to place one when he is short on funds. His 23-year-old wife, tired of the constant harassment by creditors, died by suicide.

Ranjitha was found hanging at her home in Karnataka's Chitradurga on March 18. According to the family, Darshan had racked up a debt of over Rs 1 crore.

He worked as an assistant engineer in the Minor Irrigation Department at Hosadurga and had been ensnared in the realm of IPL betting from 2021 to 2023. This took a major toll on the couple's finances. Allegedly, he had borrowed over Rs 1.5 crore to place bets after his luck ran out and he lost all his money. While he managed to return Rs 1 crore, cops say that he still has a pending loan of ₹ 84 lakh.

Ranjitha married Darshan in 2020. She realised the truth about Darshan's involvement in betting in 2021, claims her father Venkatesh.

In his complaint, Venkatesh said that his daughter was extremely distressed due to the constant harassment by moneylenders and this led to her suicide. He has also named 13 men who had allegedly lent the money.

He said that his son-in-law was lured into betting with a promise of quick money.

"He (Darshan) was not willing to get into betting, but the suspects forced him saying it was an easy way to get rich. They promised to finance his betting activities against some blank cheques as security," he said.

Cops during their investigation found a suicide note, where she detailed the harassment they faced. Darshan and Ranjitha have a two-year-old son.

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News Network
March 21,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 21: Election Commission (EC) on Thursday directed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology of Narendra Modi-led government to put an end to bulk WhatsApp messages labelled 'Viksit Bharat Sampark.' It has also sought a compliance report immediately from the ministry.

EC had received several complaints that such messages are still being delivered on citizens’ phones despite the announcement of Lok Sabha elections and the model code of conduct (MCC) entering into force.

In response, the govt informed the commission that although the letters were sent out before MCC came into force, some of them could have possibly been delivered to recipients with a delay because of systemic and network limitations.

In the past few days, several WhatsApp users have received messages from 'Viksit Bharat Sampark' seeking feedback and suggestions from the public. 

The message comes with a PDF that has a letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioning government schemes like Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Ayushman Bharat, Matru Vandana Yojana, etc, and seeking suggestions from the citizens over government initiatives and schemes.

The letter which addresses users as 'my dear family members' had sparked political controversy. Congress has called the PDF file attached with the message a ‘political propaganda’.

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News Network
March 18,2024

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New Delhi, Mar 18: The Election Commission on Monday afternoon issued orders for the removal of six Home Secretaries - including the top bureaucrats from Gujarat, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.

The poll panel also directed the transfer of West Bengal's Director-General of Police, the top cop of a state that has seen several instances of poll-related violence in recent years. The poll panel further said a shortlist of three potential replacements had to be prepared and submitted by 5 pm.

The re-shuffle, not an uncommon move by the Election Commission before major polls, also includes the transfer of the Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand Home Secretaries, as well as senior officials attached to the offices of the Mizoram and Himachal Pradesh Chief Ministers.

In addition, Iqbal Singh Chahal, who is Commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, and other officials in municipalities across Maharashtra, have been removed too.

All of this comes less than a month before the 2024 Lok Sabha poll; the ECI on Saturday said voting will begin on April 19 and run over seven phases till June 1.

This is, in fact, the first bureaucratic re-jig by the ECI since it announced polling dates.

The ECI's move comes after a meeting of Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and his two associates, the newly-appointed Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. This step comes as part of the poll panel's commitment to ensure a level playing field for all political parties in the forthcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, as well as by-polls for 26 seats in 13 states.

Sources said the personnel removed were found to be holding dual charge in the offices of the respective chief ministers of each state, and this could compromise, or be seen to be compromising, required neutrality, particularly in relation to law-and-order before, during and after polling.

Bengal's ruling Trinamool has not yet reacted to the removal of DGP Rajiv Malik, who is seen by some to be close to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party. In the past, the state government has questioned the last-minute re-shuffle of senior civil service and police officials so close to an election, arguing it actually hampers prep work since the new faces need time to adjust to the post.

Bengal has frequently witnessed violence during polling season; in June last year over a dozen people were killed across the state as voting for a panchayat election was underway.

The Trinamool accused the opposition of instigating violence and criticised central forces for their failure to protect voters, while the Congress claimed the state had let thugs loose on the people.

While announcing the dates on Saturday, the Chief Election Commissioner said the poll panel would take a very dim view of any violence during the election. Mr Kumar said the ECI is prepared to come down hard on any such incident. "We're putting political parties on notice," he declared.

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