1. Bengaluru May Get its Own Times Square at Brigade Road Junction
The city may soon house a landmark, on the lines of New York City’s Times Square, at the Residency Road and Brigade Road intersection in central business district (CBD) where a war memorial stands at present.
BBMP officials have extensive plans to transform the junction into a prominent tourist destination. Mayor R Sampath Raj announced this on Thursday during the much-awaited reopening of the relaid Church Street. It had largely remained out of bounds for the past year as unpredictable rain and other factors led to the TenderSURE work missing several deadlines.
The street was last on the itinerary of chief minister Siddaramaiah and Bengaluru development minister K J George, who also inaugurated Phase 1 of the Okalipuram eight-lane corridor and part of a multi-storey parking facility at Freedom Park.
(Source: The Times of India)
2. Congress Government Has Ruined City: BJP
The BJP on Thursday released a charge sheet, accusing the ruling Congress of ruining Bengaluru and turning the state capital into a 'garbage' and 'crime' city.
A 15-page document 'Lekka Kodi Bengaluru Janarige' (give accounts to the people of Bengaluru) lists out the apparent failures of the government and large-scale corruption in city-related works.
Union Minister for Human Resource Development Prakash Javadekar, who is also party election in-charge for Karnataka, said misgovernance and maladministration by the Congress has forced the people of Bengaluru to struggle for even basic amenities like roads, water supply and underground drainage.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
3. Church Street Makeover is Complete
Church Street, which was closed for traffic for months, was re-opened on Thursday. The 700-metre-long road has been developed on the lines of TenderSURE (Specifications for Urban Utilities and Road Execution) and was inaugurated by Bengaluru Development Minister KJ George and Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy.
The ‘model road’ was partially open for vehicular movement earlier this year, even as it missed several deadlines. The road now has a 5.5-metre-wide granite cobble stone lined carriageway with utility ducts on either side. The width of the pavement varies from 2.5 metres to 4 metres.
(Source: The Hindu)
4. Homemaker Murdered, Gold and Cash Missing
A 26-year-old woman was found murdered with her throat slit at her house in Kasturba Nagar in West Bengaluru on Thursday morning.
The deceased, Kavitha, was a homemaker and was married to Shivaram, who works for a plywood firm in Nayandahalli. The couple had two children, the police said.
According to the police, the incident happened between 9.15 and 9.45 am. The murder came to light when Kavitha's father Shivaswamy and sister-in-law Mangalagowri visited Kavitha's house around 10.30 am.
The police have collected CCTV camera footage from areas in and around and suspect that a known person could have committed the murder.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
5. 3 Schoolboys Flee to Hyderabad Over Poor Grades
Three Class VII students who went missing on Wednesday from Byappanahalli in east Bengaluru were traced in Hyderabad on Thursday morning. The trio were had performed poorly in school tests and were afraid that their parents would scold them.
The three boys, aged around 12, are students of a private school in CV Raman Nagar. They went missing soon after they left school for home on Wednesday. Their parents lodged a missing complaint with the Byappanahalli police by night.
Investigating officials said they hatched a plan to run away on Saturday after their class teacher announced a parent-teacher meeting.
(Source: The Times of India)
6. Woman Held for Hoax call to Implicate Husband
A 32-year-old homemaker has been arrested for allegedly making a hoax call to the police implicating her husband as a member of a Naxal group which was planning an attack on the international airport.
According to the police, Veena Prakash wanted her husband — a businessman who was in judicial custody in a cheating case — to remain incarcerated. Her neighbour, Sridhar R, 23, who is a nurse, has also been arrested. “Sridhar made the call on 24 January,” said a police officer.
The police identified Sridhar as the caller. “When we questioned him, he confessed it was a hoax,” the officer added.
(Source: The Hindu)
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