Hahaha..! How will Dr' Kanhaiya treat his patients, wonders Hindutva leader

Mangaluru, Jan 18: ‘Ride For Rotary’ convoy of motor vehicles will be flagged off from Hotel Ocean Pearl Inn at Bejai-Kapikad, Mangaluru on 19th January, 2020 at 8.30 a.m.

Mangaluru has been chosen as the starting point for the convoy route this year which will cover Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. 38 Rotarians from 14 countries are participating in 2019-20 Ride For Rotary, which is the fourth edition of the event. They will traverse through Madikeri, Mysore, Wayanad, Ooty, Coimbatore, Munnar, Thekkady and Allepey before terminating at Kochi on 29th of January, 2020.

2019-20 Ride For Rotary includes 28 motorbikes and 5 cars. The participating nationalities are India, Norway, Sweden, Canada, France, Germany, USA, UK, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Poland and Belgium. They belong to ages 21 to 78, with 78-year old Otto Rieve from Canada being the senior most enthusiast. Swiss national of Indian origin Raj Patholi and Mangalorean Abraham Zacharias are among the riders. Delegates who have already reached Mangalore visited Bantwal on Friday to attend a gala dinner hosted by the Rotary Club of Bantwal.

Ride for Rotary is a charity event conceived by Rotary District 3181 which comprises of the revenue districts of Mysore, Kodagu, Dakshina Kannada and Chamarajanagar covering 85 Rotary Clubs in 9 zones. Rotarians from across the world will come together for twelve exhilarating days. They will traverse through the meticulously arranged routes, enjoy the natural beauty of the places and experience the varied cultures and cuisines of the region. Ride for Rotary connects people and places like no other - Rotary Connects the World.

The proceeds from the event go to The Rotary Foundation, a charitable organisation that works tirelessly for the upliftment of the society.

Bengaluru, Jul 14: The Karnataka government on Tuesday made changes to the Land Reforms Act 1961 through an ordinance to allow non-agriculturists to buy and own farmland for farming.

“The Land Reforms Act has been amended through an ordinance and notified after Governor Vajubhai R Vala gave his assent to it on Monday night,” a Revenue Department official told media persons.

It now permits non-farmers to buy farmland and grow food crops. But they can’t use it for other activities.

“Sections 79 A, B and C of the Act have been repealed, paving way for bona fide citizens to invest in farmland and take to farming as a hobby, passion or additional occupation, which is rewarding,” the official said.

The amended Act will enable the state to attract investment in the farm sector and boost food output. The farm sector’s contribution to the state’s gross domestic product (GDP) has been less than the manufacturing and services sectors over the last two decades.

Criticism by farmers, the Congress and the JD(S) since the cabinet approved changes on June 11 forced the state government to retain section 80 of the Act, with an amendment, to prevent sale of dam water irrigated farmland.

“The ordinance has also added a new section (80A), which says relaxations under the Act will not apply to land given to farmers under the Karnataka SC and ST (Scheduled Caste and Tribe) Act 1978,” the official said.

The changes permit mortgage of farmland only to the state-run institutions, firms and cooperative societies specified in the Act. The ordinance also makes legal cases pending in courts against the sections amended redundant as the new Act addresses the concerns raised in them.

“Besides generating substantial revenue for the state government, the Act will now allow farmers who find the occupation non-remunerative and risky due to droughts/floods and labour shortage to sell their surplus land to urban buyers,” the official said.

Ruling BJP Rajya Sabha member KC Ramamurthy from Bengaluru said the amended Act would allow any citizen to buy farmland.

“Though hundreds of people petitioned successive governments for the past 45 years to abolish the ‘draconian’ sections, they were ignored. I compliment Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa and Revenue Minister R Ashoka for the decision to allow everyone to buy farmland irrespective of their occupation or profession,” Ramamurthy told media persons.

Udupi, Feb 23: Karnataka's minister for Tourism and Culture CT Ravi on Sunday said that India is losing money as because people travel abroad to visit casinos.

Arguing that casinos are being used by countries to promote tourism, he took to Twitter to highlight the issue, saying, "During my interaction with FKCCI, I had mentioned that many countries have promoted Tourism through Casinos. Isn't it a fact that lakhs of Indians go abroad to play in Casinos? Can anyone stop them? At the moment, there is no proposal before Our Govt to set up Casinos here,' he tweeted in the morning.

He also urged the Central government to stop people from visiting abroad.

Yesterday, the minister had stated that he has no intention of developing "casino tourism" in the state.

"I only expressed my opinion on how other countries have promoted tourism, during a discussion. Casino tourism is one such thing, I have no intention of developing it here," Ravi had told media when asked to comment on Karnataka government's proposal of casinos in Coastal Karnataka.

"What I meant was many Indians go and spend there, our money should be spent here itself," he had said.