Mangaluru: Cops seize nearly 12 kg ganja, arrest two peddlers

Bengaluru, Jul 16: Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday hit out at state Health Minister B Sriramulu for stating that "only God can save Karnataka" from COVID-19 and asked him to resign from his post.

Speaking to media here in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said, "The government cannot say that we are helpless. Why is the government in power? You have power and you have money. It is your primary duty to serve the citizens of the state."

On being asked about Karnataka Health Minister's statement, the Congress leader said: "Let him resign and go out. God will help you only if you will put all your efforts."

Meanwhile, President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee DK Shivakumar tweeted "Karnataka's Health Minister saying 'Only God can save Karnataka' reflects poorly on @BSYBJP govt's ability to handle the Covid crisis. Why do we need such a government if they cannot tackle the pandemic?"

Sriramulu had said on Wednesday that either people should inculcate awareness or only God can save them from COVID-19.

"Who can save us at this time? It's either God or people should inculcate awareness in them. Congress leaders are involved in political mudslinging at this time. This is not fine and it will not help them in any way," the Minister had said.

"It is a crucial time, in the interest of the general public. I request all the Congress leaders not to indulge in loose talk regarding the issue, it leads to more panic situation among the general public. We are ready to adhere to any punishment if we did any wrong thing," he had added.

Bengaluru, Mar 25: The Director-General of Police (DGP), Praveen Sood said on Wednesday that grocery stores and supermarkets can stay open for 24 hours across the state for people’s convenience.
Sood’s statement came on Wednesday following panic among people after the government’s announcement of a 21-day long nationwide lockdown starting on March 24.

The Himachal Pradesh police have confirmed the arrested a man for injuring a pregnant cow by feeding her wheat flour ball laced with firecrackers. 

The cow’s jaw was blown off-- reprising the tragic story of a pregnant elephant that lost its life after eating a pineapple stuffed with a firecracker in Kerala.

While the incident took place on May 26 in Jhandutta area of Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur district, it came to light only on Saturday, May 6, when the cow’s owner, Gurdayal Singh, uploaded a video of the injured animal on social media.

In the video, Gurdiyal Singh describes how the cow’s mouth had been injured after one Nandlal fed her explosives.

He confirmed that Nandlal works as a mechanic in Singh’s neighbourhood. Singh said that Nandlal has no remorse for his action. Nandlal has said that he is not scared of the repercussions and that he will continue to do whatever he deems fit. “Even the village sarpanch cannot harm me”, challenged Nandlal when confronted by Singh. 

The cow has given birth to a healthy calf since but Singh said the animal is still not able to eat because of an injured jaw and is being administered Glucose.

The video went viral with people demanding strict action against the person who fed firecrackers to the animal.

The practice of studding dough balls with firecrackers isn’t uncommon in Himachal, and farmers resort to this to keep wild animals, especially boards, off their fields. In the Kerala incident too, the explosive-filled-fruit was meant for wild boars. In many parts of the country, including Himachal, the method is also used to hunt for bush meat -- an illegal practice.

Bilaspur superintendent of oolice (SP) Devakar Sharma confirmed the incident and said the cow was fed a highly explosive firecracker popularly called “aalu bomb”. 

Aalu is Hindi for potato. He said a case under Section 286 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act has been registered and the role of the neighbours named by Singh is being investigated.