Udupi: Brother arrested for raping, impregnating 14-year-old sister

Mangaluru, Apr 23: The scarcity of water in Kukkavu area of Belthangady town in Dakshina Kannada district has forced school-going children to dig a well with their hands.
The children studying in primary schools were seen lifting the heavy buckets of water from the well.

The residents were facing the water shortage from the past couple of days, amid the coronavirus lockdown.
A group of five adolescents managed to dug the well as deep as 12 feet within just a span of four days.

" We are facing water problem now. With the support of my five more friends, we dug this well. At the beginning we just found soil, then in the deeper layers, we also found stones. We got access to the water at 10 feet down," said Dhanush, a class 9th student, while speaking to news agency.

The shortage of water during the summer months is a perennial problem in across several states in India, and the growing population has only added to the woes.

In extreme conditions, poor have to draw water from small water holes.

Mangaluru, May 31: The bus services by private operators in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi Districts will begin from tomorrow (June 1) with 15 per cent hike in the fares, Canara Bus Owners Association president Rajavarma Ballal said on Sunday.

In a statement issued here, he said that the members of the Association have appealed for a 3-month tax break. ''We have received tax breaks for 2 months and have demanded for an additional month again,'' he added.

He said that the government has agreed to a 15 per cent hike in bus fares. All the passes issued already will be converted into cash cards and no discounts will be available till the end of the COVID-19 crisis.

An added attraction in private buses will be the option of paying travel fares through smart cards.

According to Dakshina Kannada Bus Operators Association president Dilraj Alva, 50 per cent of 325 private city buses will resume their services on Monday. It also meant that 50 per cent of buses will operate on the allotted routes.

The smart cards (or travel cards called Chalo Card) will not be introduced on all routes at a time. They will be introduced in a phased manner covering all routes from Monday.

Bengaluru, Mar 22: People here stayed at their homes due to Janata Curfew on Sunday amid the coronavirus scare.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Thursday urged people to stay at their homes as a precautionary measure against the spread of coronavirus.

"In such difficult times, all Indians are supporting the cause. We accept and obey the Prime Minister's orders wholeheartedly as it is about how we protect ourselves and keep our children safe from this disease," said Shashikant Varma, a resident of Bengaluru.

"We hope the situation gets better at earliest and everyone gets rid of the virus," Varma added.
"All the shops have been closed.Everyone is at their homes to avoid getting infected from this deadly virus," said Harish Niwasi, another resident.

"Today is PMs Janata Curfew and so we all are at home. I appeal to all that by staying at home we can save each other from the deadly virus. We thank the PM for guiding us at such difficult times," said Tulsi Ram Varma.

The Janata curfew which began at 7 am today will come to an end at 9 pm.

Till now, the total number of positive coronavirus cases in Karnataka is 15 out of which one person has been cured and one death has taken place in the state, according to the Health Ministry.

The Karanataka Health Department on Saturday confirmed five new coronavirus cases in the state, taking the total count to 20.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), till now there are 341 positive cases of coronavirus in the country.