Restore my freedom, allow me to follow Islam and live with my husband: Hadiya tells SC

Bengaluru, Apr 22: The Karnataka government has announced partial relaxation of COVID-19 lockdown norms in the state allowing certain construction activities, manufacturing of packaging materials, courier services, among others, from April 23.

The activities will be permitted only outside the COVID-19 containment zones identified by the government.

Service provided by self-employed people like electrician, IT repair, plumbers, motor mechanics, and carpenters in local areas have also been given exemption.

Tea, coffee and rubber plantation have been allowed to work with 50 per cent workforce, and a similar exemption have been given to processing, packaging, sale and marketing of these produce.

“To mitigate hardship to the public, select additional activities have been allowed,which will come into effect from 00.00 hours of April 23,” Chief Secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar said in an order on Wednesday.

However, these additional activities will be operationalised by District Administrations and BBMP (city corporation in the case of Bengaluru city) based on strict compliance to the guidelines on lockdown measures, it said.

Before operating these relaxations, district administrations and BBMP (city corporation) shall ensure that all the preparatory arrangements on social distancing in offices, work place establishments as also sectoral requirements are in place, it said, adding that relaxations will not apply in containment zones.

Facing a financial crunch, the state government has been eager to kick-start economic activities in the state that had come to halt due to the coronavirus lockdown.

While hospitality services, bars, malls, theatres, shopping complexes, religious and places of worship among others will continue to remain shut, relaxation of norms has been for activities that are linked to essential services such as health, infrastructure and agriculture.

As per the order, while, public transportation will continue to remain suspended till May 3,private vehicles with passes for emergency services and personnel commuting with passes to places of work and back will be allowed.

Activities permitted include construction of roads, irrigation projects, buildings and all kinds of industrial projects, including MSMEs, in rural areas and all kinds of projects in industrial estates, where workers are available on site and no one is required to be brought in from outside.

Also permitted to function are manufacturing units of essential goods – drugs, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, their raw materials and intermediates;

food processing industries in rural areas, coal production (mines and mineral production and activities incidental to mining) besides manufacturing units of packaging materials.

Alappuzha, Jan 4: The management committee of a mosque in Kerala is all set to solemnize the wedding of a Hindu couple, setting yet another instance of the communal harmony prevailing in Kerala.

The Cheravally Muslim Jamaat Committee at Kayamkulam in Alappuzha district in South Kerala is conducting the marriage of Anju and Sharath after the bride's mother approached the Jamaat authorities seeking help. 

The marriage will be held at the mosque premises on January 19 as per Hindu rituals and the Jamaat Committee has also prepared the invitations.

Anju's father Ashokan died a few years back and her mother Bindhu was struggling to win bread for her three children. Nujumudeen Alummoottil, a businessman and secretary of the Jamaat had helped the family earlier also.

Hence Bindu sought his help for the marriage of Anju. Nujumudeen discussed it with other members of the Jamaat committee and members of the mosque.

Najumudeen said that there was no hesitation from anyone on conducting the marriage by the mosque at its premises. A gift in cash and gold would be also given to the couple.

Kerala recently witnessed a church allowing the Muslim believers who participated in an anti-CAA meet to offer namaz at the church premises and another church conducting a carol service with the youth of the parish dressed up in traditional Muslim attire.

Chikkamagaluru, Jun 13: Deputy Commissioner Dr Bagadi Gautham said that movement of heavy vehicles has been banned from Tanikodi to S K Border on NH 169 (Mangaluru to Solapur) from June 15 to August 15.

In an official statement issued here on Friday evening, he said that due to heavy rain lashing in the District the minor bridges on the stretch at Umbalagere, Goravanahalli and Gulaganji are in a dilapidated condition. As a precautionary measure, the movement of heavy vehicles has been banned.

As an alternative, all the vehicles (below 15 tonnes) from Chikmagalur can travel via Baliho Nur-Magundi-Kalasa-Kudremukh-SK Border. The vehicles from NR Pura (below 15 tonnes) should travel via Koppa-Hariharapura-Bidaragodu-Agumbe.