Favour entry of women of all age groups in Sabarimala temple: Kerala Govt to SC

Mysuru, Feb 14: Citing the coronavirus scare prevalent in the city, hotel owners have urged the civic corporation to shut down roadside food vends, calling them a risk to public health.

A team of the city Hotel Owners Association, led by president C Narayanagowda and honorary secretary Ravindra Bhat, met mayor Tasneem Bano and MCC commissioner Gurudatta Hegde on Tuesday and urged them to implement the high court’s ban on street food vending.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the association said it had raised the poor hygiene at such joints amid the coronavirus threat and increasing incidence of chikungunya and malaria in the city. There is no check on the ingredients or water used and the cleanliness of the kitchens and cooking staff, they pointed out. Many of the joints operate near drains and public urinals and don’t have running water for washing or cleaning utensils, they said. Besides, the vends dump unsegregated garbage and compromise pedestrian safety by blocking pavements, they alleged.

“As this involves the livelihood of the vendors, I will take a decision after discussions with the commissioner and elected representatives,” the mayor said while pointing out that MCC had issued identity cards to the vendors after collecting details about them and their stalls. She said the health and education standing committees would also be consulted.

Commissioner Hegde said MCC was planning to move the vendors to designated hawking zones to ensure their livelihood was not affected. He explained that any drive to remove the vends was fraught with law and order problems. “False cases have been filed against MCC officers whenever they conducted drives against footpath food vendors in non-hawking zones. We will consult with the city police commissioner before taking any steps,” he said.

Bengaluru, Mar 14: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Saturday suspended its proposed Akil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) meeting scheduled to be held in the outskirts of the city, in the wake of the outbreak of Coronavirus in the state.

'In view of the seriousness of the pandemic COVID-19 and in the light of instructions and advisories thereof issues by the Union and the state governments, the Akil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha meeting scheduled in Bengaluru has been suspended', Sarakaryavah Suresh Joshi tweeted.

All Swayamsevaks should cooperate with the administrations to create awareness among the public and to face this successfully, he said.

It may be recalled that Karnataka State Government had ordered shut down of pubs, malls, theatres, and ban mass gatherings over the Coronavirus scare, on Friday.

Shivamogga, Feb 6: A youth, who allegedly uploaded pornography and inappropriate videos of children on social media, was arrested by the district CEN police after a tip-off from the CyberTipline.

The accused is a resident of Sorab taluk and is said to be below 18 years. He uploaded the objectionable content during April and May last year. He was traced based on the IP address of his computer and the mobile call records shared by the investigating agencies.

He was arrested in January under the provisions of the Information Technology Act 2000 and sent to judicial custody, said police sources.