Govt to bear Rs 78 cr cost of 108-ft-tall Kempegowda statue outside Airport: DyCM

Bengaluru, Jul 27: Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, on completion of one year of his government, today said coronavirus hampered his development plans for the state.

He said the state will not see a lockdown again "at any cost".

"Due to coronavirus we couldn't meet people's expectations but now we'll not have lockdown in Karnataka at any cost. In future we're going to fulfill whatever I announced in Budget. If necessary we'll take loans and complete all development work," said Yediyurappa.

"Covid has hampered development plans of Karnataka, lot more needs to be done, i'm committed to providing an able, stable government," he said.

Arrangements were made for virtual celebrations to mark the one-year anniversary of Yediyurappa government at Banquet Hall in Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru. Social distancing was maintained at the event.

A record 5,199 new COVID-19 cases and 82 deaths were reported from Karnataka on Sunday, the state's health department said.

With this, the total number of coronavirus cases in the state stands at 96,141, including 58,417 active cases and 35,838 recoveries.

So far, 1,878 deaths have been reported from Karnataka. Karnataka is the only state to have over 50,000 active cases with overall tally below 1 lakh.

Bengaluru, Aug 4: With preparations underway for conducting exams for the final semester/ year students in the state, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Dr CN Ashwathnarayan on Monday directed the respective universities to conduct exams for the backlog papers as well.

"In the wake of COVID-19, it has been decided to hold exams only for the students of final semester/year courses. It has come to our notice that some universities have decided against conducting exams for final year students who have a backlog to clear from previous semesters. This is unpardonable," the Deputy Chief Minister said.

"Our intention is to see that the final year students finish their course. In the present situation, conducting only final semester exams won't help. We have to help the students in clearing their backlogs," added Ashwathnarayan, directing all universities to compulsorily conduct these exams.

Meanwhile, Ashwathnarayan thanked the staff and officials of various government departments who were responsible for successfully conducting the CET exams even amidst the difficult situation in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic.

"In all, 1,94,419 students had registered for the CET exams, of which 1,75,428 wrote the exams. The percentage of students who took up the exams this year was equivalent to that of the previous years, in normal times," the DCM informed.

"After we successfully conducted the exams, Arunachal Pradesh is going to conduct the Public Service Commission exams on the lines of how we successfully conducted the exams. Likewise, even our KPSC has said it will conduct the exams. We must appreciate the good work of the Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA), which has set an example for others," Ashwathnarayan said.

The deputy chief minister said that 33 colleges in various districts across the state faced shortage of land and that it is the responsibility of the District Commissioners (DCs) to get the lands sanctioned for all these colleges.
In Bagalkot district alone land has not been sanctioned for six degree colleges, he said.

Reacting to this, Bagalkot DC Captain Rajendra assured to look into the matter as soon as he receives the proposal from department officials.

"Similarly, there is shortage of land for five Diploma colleges and 28 ITI colleges in different parts of the state. The DCs must immediately pay attention to this. Once they get the land, buildings will come up within no time," the Karnataka deputy chief minister said.