All steps taken to counter corona: DVS

Davanagere, Jan 9: Residents of SVR colony of Channagiri Taluq here on Thursday built a temple in the memory of a male monkey, who died here 'unexpectedly'.

A group of monkeys entered the SVR colony around three months back. The monkeys have never disturbed anybody in the area and they used to play with children living in the colony.

Locals said that the monkeys are very obedient to them.

Unfortunately, one of the monkeys died suddenly on Wednesday, causing distress among people who were very fond of him.

Showing their love for the deceased monkey, locals performed his final rite according to Hindu tradition.

Later, the residents approached the president of the village Panchayat to allot funds to build a temple in the monkey's memory.

The construction of the temple has already begun in the area at the same place where the monkey's funeral was conducted.

Bengaluru, Jan 2: The Congress leadership in Delhi is expected to start the process of selecting a new party chief for Karnataka next week. There are strong indications the race has narrowed to DK Shivakumar and MB Patil.

Party insiders said the leadership almost finalised Shivakumar’s name as the president of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), but the decision was put on hold after requests by some senior members.

“It’s not that we are against Shivakumar. We think the party should have a Lingayat at the helm since community strongman and chief minister BS Yediyurappa is at the fag end of his long political career. There’s an opportunity here for a Congressman to occupy that space,” said a senior Congress politician, who didn’t want to be named.

That’s where the candidacy of Patil, a Lingayat, scores high.

The party, however, doesn’t want to compromise on quality and wants an efficient KPCC president who can unite two rival factions within the party, one led by Siddaramaiah and another by former union minister KH Muniyappa.

The need to pick a new state president arose after Dinesh Gundurao resigned from the post last month, taking moral responsibility for Congress’s poor showing in the byelections. Siddaramaiah also stood down as Congress party legislature leader.

The insiders said the new KPCC chief could be announced after January 16. The party might also appoint two working presidents and a new legislature party leader, who will automatically become the opposition’s voice in the assembly.

For the latter position, the name of senior Dalit politician and former deputy chief minister G Parameshwara is doing the rounds. But the party, the sources said, could still ask Siddaramaiah to reconsider his decision and stay on.

Many Congress members had raised questions over his stewardship after the bypoll disappointment. They said on his watch, the party had also fared badly in the assembly and Lok Sabha elections, demanding that he be held accountable.

Siddaramaiah is expected to visit Delhi next week to discuss the leadership issue with party boss Sonia Gandhi. Some other senior Congress members, including BK Hariprasad, are also likely to meet her.

Udupi, Jul 21: Sri Sugunendra Teertha Swami, the chief pontiff of Puthige Mutt, has tested positive for coronavirus. 

The pontiff got admitted into KMC Hospital Manipal last night and his treatment is in progress at the said hospital.

He was supposed to initiate his annual Chaturmasa Vruta at Padigaru Mutt on Tuesday.

According to sources, he was suffering from fever and hence he opted to get tested for covid-19. His health condition is said to be stable.