1. Bandipur Tiger Which Killed Farmer Finally Captured, to be Taken to Mysuru
Five days after Karnataka Forest Department officials began a hunt for a maneater responsible for killing a farmer in Karnataka’s Bandipur area, the tiger was finally captured on Sunday afternoon, after being shot with tranquilizers.
Department officials confirmed that the tiger is in a healthy condition and will be rehabilitated in accordance with the National Tiger Conservation guidelines. After a thorough medical check up, the tiger will be taken to Mysuru and be put in a rehabilitation centre meant for maneater-cats.
Both Head of Forest Department Sridhar Punati and Assistant Conservator of Forests of Gopalswamy Betta Range Ravi Kumar confirmed that the tiger has been captured and is being kept in a mobile enclosure.
(Source: The News Minute)
2. Medical Seat Scam: Govt Ignored Warnings From Regulatory Bodies
Officials of two regulatory bodies claim the medical seat scam which the income-tax department is currently investigating could have been averted had the government acted on complaints of irregularities in the admission process.
Officials of both the fee regulatory and admission overseeing committees claim they received several complaints of seats being illegally blocked and allotted to ineligible candidates at hefty prices in both deemed and private medical colleges. These complaints were passed on to the government.
While the fee regulatory committee received six complaints just before the start of the admission process in July, no action was taken after committee chairman Justice DV Shylendra Kumar’s term ended in December 2018.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Two Lakh kg Plastic Seized Since March 2016; Bommanahalli Tops List
Back in March 2016, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike banned use of plastic products with a thickness of 50 microns or less. Since then, over 2.4 lakh kilograms of plastic items falling in that category have been seized.
Bommanahalli zone, home to the country’s top IT/ BT majors, accounted for the highest share, contributing to 30% of the haul. Yelahanka and the East zone were next. Dasarahalli in the north-west accounted for the lowest seizure volume.
Statistics accessed by TOI show the rate of plastic seizure had been slow in the first two years of the ban, and gained significant momentum in the past financial year.
BBMP commissioner BH Anil Kumar attributed the higher seizure in some zones to citizen activism and drives undertaken by the Palike.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. State Govt Told to Set up POCSO Courts in 18 Districts
The Supreme Court has asked the state governments to establish courts dedicated for trying cases under The Protection of Childern from Sexual Offenses Act (Posco Act). This follows a drastic increase in cases of sexual offences on children.
Justice B V Nagarathna, Judge and Chairperson of Juvenile and Pocso Committee of Karnataka High Court, said the apex court has set clear guidelines, mandating that courts shall come up in districts with more than 100 Pocso cases. Accordingly, Karnataka will have to set up such courts in 18 districts.
In Karnataka, a total 5,142 cases have been registered under the Pocso Act in 30 districts in the last three years.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
5. Couple Takes Their Own Lives as Family Opposes Relationship
A couple committed suicide by consuming poison at a hotel room near Mangaluru Railway Station on Sunday.
According to Commissioner of Police Dr P S Harsha, the deceased are Vishnu (22) and Greeshma (21), both students hail from Kasargod district in Kerala. It was said that both were studying in a college in Moodbidri and were in love. The family members had opposed their relationship as both belonged to different castes.
On Sunday, Greeshma and Vishnu came to Mangaluru and rented a room in a hotel near the Railway Station and consumed poison.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
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