Forensic experts and bomb squads from Bengaluru and Mangaluru arrived at the explosion site in Shivamogga on Friday morning. Karnataka Bengaluru Coronavirus News January 22 Highlights: Hours after a massive explosion that took place near a gravel and boulder crushing facility killed five people in Shivamogga, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa ordered a high-level probe to look into the incident. “I had instructed the authorities last night to take all necessary measures for rescue operations and others. A high-level probe has also been ordered. Strict action will be taken against the guilty,” Yediyurappa said.
He added, “The incident that took place in Shivamogga yesterday night is tragic and highly unfortunate. I express my deepest condolences to the kin of the deceased.”
Meanwhile, demanding the Centre to withdraw the contentious farm laws and announcing solidarity to their counterparts protesting in the national capital, farmers in Karnataka have planned a massive tractor rally in Bengaluru on Republic Day.
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Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa
Tracking missing persons or objects could soon get easier, thanks to a unique software platform developed by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). The platform, researchers claim, enables apps and algorithms to “intelligently track and analyse” video feeds from cameras spread across cities.
Yogesh Simmhan, associate professor at the Department of Computational and Data Sciences (CDS), said such analysis would also be helpful for automated traffic control as well as other Smart City initiatives.
“There has been a lot of research on increasing the accuracy of these models, but sufficient attention hasn’t been paid to how you can make (the model) work as part of a larger operation,” Simmhan said. He added that ‘Anveshak’, the software platform, was developed to enable an efficient running of tracking models, plugging in advanced computer vision tools and intelligently adjusting different parameters, such as the search radius of a camera network, in real-time.
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Students from various colleges in Bengaluru gathered together at Mysore Bank Circle in Bengaluru on Thursday demanding the government to provide basic facilities for them to attend classes. In a protest organised by the All India Democratic Students’ Organisation (AIDSO), students held placards with slogans ‘scholarship is our right’, ‘open hostels with all basic necessities’, and ‘recruit teaching staff’ among others urging the government to resolve their problems.
"The Karnataka government has not yet invited applications for hostels and
scholarships for present academic year, which has caused outrage among students. Students in many urban and rural parts of the state are facing problems with bus passes, absence of required faculty in colleges, and several other issues since classes resumed after the coronavirus-induced lockdown," AIDSO Bengaluru President Sithara H M said.
A day after some ministers of the Yediyurappa-led BJP cabinet expressed disgruntlement to Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa over the portfolios allocated to them in the latest rejig, the Karnataka government Thursday announced a revision in portfolios allocated to them. The portfolios allocated to the ministers, according to a government notification issued on Friday by the Karnataka Governor are as follows:
Yediyurappa had expanded his cabinet on January 13, inducting seven new ministers and dropping one minister to take the strength of the cabinet to 33, one short of full capacity. Portfolios were allocated to them on Thursday after a reshuffle.
The Central Crime Branch of the Bengaluru City Police Friday announced the arrest of three people who allegedly stole gold ornaments worth Rs 75 lakhs from different parts of the city.
Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Patil said that the accused trio was involved in 10 different cases. "The accused had committed crimes in Hennur, Begur, Rajajinagar, Puttanhalli & other areas of Bengaluru. A team led by PI Hazresh has seized 1.5 kilograms of gold ornaments worth Rs 75 lakhs from the accused," he said.
CCB sleuths added that the trio has been arrested and an investigation is underway.
In a show of support to their counterparts protesting against the farm laws in New Delhi, farmers in Karnataka have planned a massive tractor rally in Bengaluru on Republic Day.
Kodihalli Chandrashekhar, leader of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), a farmers’ movement, said there would be over 10,000 tractors participating in the parade on January 26. “Around 25,000 farmers will enter Bengaluru and reach Freedom Park through the main roads of the city via Yeshwanthpur and Malleswaram. The parade will be held from Nelamangala to Bengaluru, with farmers arriving in more than 10,000 tractors and other vehicles. The parade is planned to begin soon after the chief minister hoists the national flag,” he said.
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Hours after announcing a high-level probe into the explosion incident at Shivamogga, Chief Minister Yediyurappa announced Rs 5 lakh compensation to the families of the deceased.
"Five people have died in the explosion at a quarry in Hunasodu village of Shivamogga district yesterday. A compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of the deceased will be given," he said, adding that he would visit the spot soon.
Further, he added that illegal mining would be "strictly dealt with" by the government. "We will take action based on the investigation report. We will stop all illegal minings in the state," he said.
As investigations are underway after an explosion in Shivamogga on Thursday night, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said the quarry owner and a person who allegedly supplied dynamite to him has been arrested by the police. "Preliminary investigation reveals a big quantity of dynamite exploded there citing some negligence by the quarry owner and the operators. The police have already arrested the quarry owner and the dynamite supplier," he said.
Earlier, CM Yediyurappa had announced a high-level probe to look into the incident.
Forensic experts and bomb squads from Bengaluru and Mangaluru arrived at the explosion site in Shivamogga on Friday morning. An investigation is underway to collect evidence and to ascertain the exact reason behind the incident, police added.
Denying reports of more deaths linked to the explosion that took place in Shivamogga on Thursday night, Deputy Commissioner K B Shivakumar told Indianexpress.com that two dead bodies were recovered from the area as of Friday morning.
"It is being circulated in public that more than 10 people have died. However, we recovered two bodies till now. Our team is sweeping the entire area to confirm if there are more (fatalities). We will give a confirmed update soon," he said.
He added, "There was no worker at the site then as the incident occurred late night. All the people who worked here regularly are safe. We have confirmed it. We are trying to trace people who were accompanying the vehicle."
V K Sasikala, the close aide of late J Jayalalithaa, tested positive for the Covid-19 on Thursday night. Ahead of her release from the Bangalore Parappana Agrahara Central prison on January 27, where she was a convict in a disproportionate assets case, Sasikala was taken to Bowring Hospital Wednesday after she complained of breathlessness.
Following her family’s request, she was shifted to Victoria Hospital on Thursday. She was being treated in the ICU for Severe Acute Respiratory Infection.
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Reacting to the incident that left at least six people died due to a massive explosion in Shivamogga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the state government was providing assistance to those affected.
"Pained by the loss of lives in Shivamogga. Condolences to the bereaved families. Praying that the injured recover soon. The State Government is providing all possible assistance to the affected," he tweeted.
A bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Bengaluru has admitted a petition filed by Antrix Corporation, ISRO’s commercial arm, for the liquidation of the space start up Devas Multimedia and has permitted a provisional liquidator to take control of the latter’s assets.
Antrix and Devas have been engaged in legal battles in India and the US since the February 11, 2011, cancellation of a January 28, 2005, deal for ISRO to launch two communication satellites for Devas to provide digital multimedia services to mobile phones.
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Hours after a massive explosion that took place near a gravel and boulder crushing facility killed at least six people in Shivamogga, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa ordered a high-level probe to look into the incident.
"I had instructed the authorities last night to take all necessary measures for rescue operations and others. A high-level probe has also been ordered. Strict action will be taken against the guilty," Yediyurappa said.
He added, "The incident that took place in Shivamogga yesterday night is tragic and highly unfortunate. I express my deepest condolences to the kin of the deceased."
With the continuing trend of overall recoveries outnumbering new Covid-19 cases in Karnataka, active cases have dropped to 7553. Over 66 per cent of these cases, however, are in capital city Bengaluru.
Meanwhile, 674 more infections were recorded in the state on Thursday as 815 others recovered from the infection. The Covid-19 positivity rate in the last 24 hours was recorded at 0.75 per cent.
As many as 88,855 samples were tested (including 7156 Rapid Antigen Detection Tests) across the state. Districts that reported the most cases on January 21 were Bengaluru Urban (371), Kalaburagi (40), Dakshina Kannada (39), and Mysuru (35). The death toll rose to 12,187 as two more deaths in the last few days were linked to the pandemic on Thursday.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Thursday handed out portfolios to seven new ministers who were inducted into his cabinet on January 13, and effected changes to portfolios of 10 ministers, triggering immediate disgruntlement among some in his Cabinet.
In the biggest changes, Forest and Environment Minister Anand Singh – an accused in a CBI case of illegal mining and violations of forest laws – was divested of the forest portfolio and given tourism while senior minister J C Madhuswamy, who was in charge of law and parliamentary affairs, was divested of his entire portfolio and given the minor portfolios of medical education and Kannada and culture.
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