1. Rs 44k Crore Loan Waiver has Helped Only 800 Farmers so far: Karnataka
Four months after the announcement of the Rs 44,000-crore farm loan waiver scheme, the state government on Wednesday, 12 December, admitted only a handful of farmers have benefited so far.
Cooperation Minister Bandeppa Kashempur told the legislative assembly that only about 800 farmers have availed benefits of the scheme, announced by the CM on 5 July. In his party’s manifesto and in pre-election rallies, Kumaraswamy had vowed to waive farmers’ loans within 24 hours of assuming office.
Justifying the delay, Kashempur said the government was expecting 43 lakh applications from farmers, including 20 lakh farmers who have availed loans from cooperative banks and the rest from nationalised banks.
(Source: The Times of India)
2. SC Refuses to Stay Karnataka’s DPR on Mekedatu Project
The Supreme Court on Wednesday, 12 December, refused to allow a plea by Tamil Nadu government for stay against a permission granted to Karnataka to prepare a detailed project report for Mekedatu balancing reservoir across Cauvery river.
The top court, however, asked the Union government and Karnataka to file a response within four weeks on Tamil Nadu’s application for restraining the upper riparian state from undertaking the exercise.
A bench presided over by Justice A M Khanwilkar also sought a reply from the Centre and Karnataka on another plea by Tamil Nadu for a direction to the Union government to appoint an independent and full-time chairman of the Cauvery Water Management Authority.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
3. Karnataka Govt’s Poor Spend on Smart City Project Draws Flak
Karnataka in the last two years has spent just Rs 91.34 crore of the total allocation of Rs 1,772 crore under the Smart City project in seven cities. The poor performance was questioned in the State Assembly on Wednesday, 12 December.
Minister for Housing and Urban Development UT Khader in a written reply to KS Eshwarappa, the MLA from Shivamogga City, said the cities of Belagavi, Davangere, Hubbali-Dharwad, Mangaluru, Shivamogga, Tumakuru and Bengaluru were selected under the Smart City project by the Centre in 2016 and 2017.
“The Smart City project is a 50:50 Central and State government project where both have released Rs 886 crore each, totalling Rs 1,772 crore. At the end of two years, the State government being the implementing authority has spent Rs 91.34 crore,” Khader said.
(Source: Hindu BusinessLine)
4. Man Gets 3 years RI for Impersonating Abdul Kalam
Additional JMFC court declared Niranjan Chidanand Bhat guilty of impersonating former president of India APJ Abdul Kalam and sentenced him to three years rigorous imprisonment on Monday, 10 December. He was also slapped with a fine of Rs 7,000.
Bhat began using the former president’s name when he was still alive. Besides impersonation, he forged the former president’s signature and created fake documents. He also created an email-id apj_abdulkalam@in.co at the cyber centre ‘Surf N View’ near Karavali junction. He sent a mail attached with a recommendation letter bearing the forged signature of Dr Kalam in which he nominated himself for the American Engineers Organisation’s Hoover award.
He also mailed a recommendation letter to letter to Goswami D Yogi in New York with the help of the fake e-mail he created. The letter sought details of a 50 MW solar thermal plant project.
(Source: Deccan Herald)
5. Lizard in Midday Meal, 87 Students Taken ill
Nearly 90 students of a government high school in Ballari district took ill after a boy found a dead lizard in the food served under the midday meal programme on Wednesday, 12 December.
The incident was reported from Government High School in Gaddigeri village of Hagaribommanahalli taluk in the district.
Sources said the students were served pulav, which was cooked on the school campus, for lunch. One boy sprang out of his chair after spotting a dead lizard, setting off panic and commotion. As many as 87 students threw up.
The condition of three students — Lokesh, Kotresh and Parashuram — warranted admission to the Hagaribommanahalli Government Hospital. The three boys are out of danger. A doctor who treated the boys said they were in shock, and had a fever.
(Source: The Times of India)
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