Anant Kumar Hegde suspects attempt on life after truck hits his escort vehicle

Bengaluru, Feb 17: Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah on Monday demanded that forest minister Anand Singh should either be expelled from the Cabinet or assigned a different portfolio.

This comes amid a number of cases, pending against Singh, including those under the Karnataka Forest Act.

"How can we expect justice from Anand Singh who has been made forest minister and is accused of (illegal mining)? We demand that he should either be dropped out of the state Cabinet or at least his portfolio be changed," Siddaramaiah told media.

Earlier in the day, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa allocated portfolios to the 10 newly inducted ministers in his Cabinet.

As part of state Cabinet's expansion, 10 MLAs including Ramesh Jarkiholi, Anand Singh, K Sudhakar, and BA Basavaraja took oath as ministers at Raj Bhawan in Bengaluru on February 6.

Mangaluru, Feb 17: Kambala superstar Shrinivas Gowda, who is drawing comparisons to ace sprinter Usain Bolt, has reportedly refused to take part in athletics trials with the Sports Authority of India.

28-year-old Gowda, who hails from Moodbidri in Dakshina Kannada, was celebrated as a potential Olympian after a clip of his race went viral, amid claims that he had done 100m in 9.55 seconds, against Bolt's record of 9.58. He has so far won 32 medals in 11 kambala events this season.

Union sports minister Kiren Rijiju and SAI said Gowda would appear for trials at SAI's Bengaluru centre on Monday. The government "will do everything to identify sporting talents", Rijiju had tweeted.

"I will meet the Chief Minister. I am keen on continuing in kambala," Gowda said. Asked about the clamour for a crossover into athletics, he said, "For the time being I have no plans to appear for SAI trials. I am busy with the Kambala season and will consider meeting them following that and after consulting my well-wishers."

The Indian government has advised expats in the UAE and the Gulf against travel till flight curbs to their home country are lifted. This follows the clamour from some quarters for special repatriation flights to India.

A senior Indian External Affairs Ministry (foreign ministry) official said Indian citizens are safe in the countries they reside in. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had spoken to leaders of Gulf countries who assured him of their welfare, the Indian foreign ministry said. Meanwhile, the Minister of State for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan,, according to a Malayalam news report, also ruled out special flights.

Responding to a question from Khaleej Times on blue-collar workers' angst following job losses, Vikas Swarup, Secretary West in the foreign ministry said, "Insofar as repatriation is concerned, as you are aware, government has advised against all travel, and Indians have been told to stay where they are, As and when the (21-day) lockdown is lifted, and normal civil aviation resumes, Indians wishing to come back will be able to do so."

According to the latest data from the Indian foreign affairs ministry, there are 1,400 cases of Covid-19 infections among Indian expats in the Gulf region.

Swarup said infected Indians are being treated and kept in isolation in the UAE and Gulf. "Our missions have established contact with all the community leaders and the situation is under control," he said.

Cargo flights operating as usual  

Cargo flights carrying fruits and vegetables from India to the Gulf have not been disrupted and would continue as usual, the diplomat said. "We are also helping with medicines based on the requests of Gulf countries," he said.

Eight million India expats live in the Gulf, including close to three million in the UAE. They account for more than 60 per cent of remittances to their home country.

India's long lockdown of 21 says ends next Tuesday. Indications are that it could be extended. Some states like Orissa have already stretched it till the end of the month and others are expected to follow suit.

The government believes that the disease is now concentrated in 75 districts, and the focus should be on these areas to manage and contain the virus.