Coronavirus forces Modi govt to defer NPR, first phase of Census

Bengaluru, Feb 1: The police have arrested two miscreants belonging to a saffron outfit after they threatened students in the city who were protesting the firing incident near Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia, telling them they would meet the same fate as the injured student.

Saffron extremist Gopal Sharma had opened fire at students protesting the Citizenship (Amendment) Act near the Delhi varsity on Thursday, injuring one.

The Bengaluru incident took place at Maurya Circle, where the nightlong demonstration against the Jamia firing and CAA began around 7.30pm. By 11pm, the number of protesters reduced to 30 but the group decided to stay back after getting the news of another alleged attack on women and Jamia students by Delhi police.

According to Adrian, a student who was at the scene, the small group of protesters stayed within a barricaded area on the road, chanting slogans, singing patriotic songs and playing music. “While we were raising anti-CAA slogans, two men from among us began shouting pro-CAA slogans. The duo was unknown and when we looked at them, they quietly moved away,” said Adrian, adding they were drunk and returned after a few minutes.

Saqib Idrees, another student protester, said the duo began to issue verbal threats. “They threatened us in Kannada that they would repeat the Jamia incident in Bengaluru,” said Saqib, adding the duo also taunted them saying ‘it’s not CAA down down, but you all will be brought down’.

When the students questioned the miscreants, cops stationed at the spot detained the duo. “Police were very cooperative. Almost 20 personnel were with us till 5am,” said Saqib.

Meanwhile, a friend of the duo watched the drama from a distance and approached the protesters to apologise on their behalf. “He said they belonged to the working class and FIRs would destroy their lives. He apologised to us and we decided to let the matter go. After all, we are Gandhians,” added Saqib.

Adrian said though the two men were drunk, their threats exposed their ideology. After the duo was detained, the students continued their protest till 5am and dispersed after singing the national anthem.

According to High Grounds police, the men are bank employees and were detained for disturbing the protesters at Maurya Junction. “They are from Andhra Pradesh and work in a PSU bank in the city. One of them is set to get married in February. He had thrown a party for his other friends for the same reason. The duo was drunk when confronted by the protesters. We booked a case of public nuisance and let them off after a warning,” police said.

Bengaluru, Apr 22: Former Chief Minister and the Opposition Leader in the Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah appealed the state government not to discriminate the poor on political lines while distributing relief package to the COVID-19 affected people in the state.

He was speaking to newsmen after attending a grocery kits distribution programme, organised in Jayanagar Assembly constituency, which was represented by the Congress MLA and former minister Ramalinga Reddy.

Charging that there are complaints about the state government in discriminating the Congress MLAs represented constituencies in providing relief kits to distribute among the poorer sections in the society, he said that “there should not be no room for politics, while fighting the COVID-19 disease”.

Bengaluru, Apr 5: The COVID-19 related lockdown has substantially improved the air quality of Bengaluru, taking it from satisfactory level to good, a senior state pollution control board offcial said here on Sunday.

"During the course of the lockdown 19 problem, we reached good position from satisfactory.

It is between zero to 50 AQI (Air Quality Index) now. We have good quality air," the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board member secretary Basavaraj Patil told PTI.

He said the indicator for knowing the air quality in

"If the AQI is zero to 50 then it is good. If it is 50 to 100 then it is satisfactory. 101 to 150 is moderate and if it is 151 to 200, then it is poor, he explained.

Patil said as per available recrods, there has been a 60 to 65 per cent reduction in pollution during the lockdown.

The city railway station and Peenya industrial area, which used to be among the areas with highest AQI, has seen pollution levels come down significantly, he said.

Another major contributor of pollution was construction activities, which too had ground to a halt due to the lockdown, resulting in zero dust emission.

Patil opined that the improved air quality would boost the immune system of the people.

"It will improve the immune system of people, including those who have breathing problems like asthma," he said.

He asked the public to learn lessons from the lockdown and later switch to sustainable means of transport such as public transport, walking and cycling,.

"We can still reduce the pollution load even after the lockdown is over," Patil said.