Induct MLC Pratapchandra Shetty into Karnataka Cabinet; make him Udupi in-charge: Youth Cong

Bengaluru, Jun 3: Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwath Narayan on Tuesday invited investors in the Electronics System and Design Manufacturing (ESDM) sector to Karnataka, as the state contributes 64 per cent to the sector's total exports from the nation.

During a video conference organised by Invest India for a few select states with leading ESDM players across the globe, Narayan said, "We are the largest chip design hub and home to 70 per cent of India's chip designers."

Karnataka has introduced industry-friendly policies from the beginning and it continues to be the leader in attracting technology-specific investments, he added.

"Karnataka has an estimated GSDP of almost USD 220 billion. We were the first to come out with IT, BT, ESDM, and AVGC (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics) policies to give a push to the growth of the technology sectors and innovation. We also have vibrant automobiles, agro, aerospace, textile and garment, and heavy engineering industries," Narayan explained.

"We have created sector-specific SEZs for key industries such as IT, biotechnology and engineering, food processing and aerospace,'' he said.

However, the state government is planning ahead as it has initiated talks with other countries.

"We have held multiple consultations with the private sector to seek inputs for returning to business as we ease the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. We are also initiating dialogue with countries across the globe to understand future plans for their companies in the post COVID era and discuss how the Karnataka government can support that," the Deputy Chief Minister stated.

"Karnataka has attracted cumulative FDI inflows in the state from 2000 to 2019 which were recorded at USD 42.3 billion," he said.

Referring to the Karnataka ESDM policy 2017-2022, Narayan further said, "We aim to stimulate the growth of 2,000 ESDM start-ups during the policy period and create 20 lakh new jobs by 2025.

Bengaluru, May 24: With 130 new cases, Karnataka's COVID-19 tally crossed the 2,000-mark on Sunday. Most new cases reported have interstate travel history with 97 coming from Maharashtra. The number of active cases in the state is 1,391 and the deaths reported so far is 42, including 2 for non-COVID reasons.

"Ninety seven of the 130 new patients are returnees from Maharashtra, the worst affected state in the country with 47,190 cases till Saturday," said a state health official. 

"The total number of COVID-19 cases across the state is 2,089, with 130 more testing positive in the past 18 hours," said the official.

Forty six patients were discharged from hospitals on Sunday taking the number of cured persons to 634. Of the 46 discharged, 18 are in Davanagere, 20 in Uttara Kannada, 4 in Chitradurga, 3 in Bagalakote and one in Haveri.

Of the 30 Karnataka districts, Chikkaballapura recorded the highest cases on Sunday at 27, followed by Yadgir (24), Udupi (23), Mandya (15) and Hassan (14).

Chikkaballapura is the home district of Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar, a doctor by profession, who is spearheading the fight against the pandemic.

On Saturday, the state's tally shot up to 1,959 due to 196 new cases, the highest single-day rise, with 195 of them crossing over from Maharashtra through the inter-state border, which was opened up as part of partial relaxation of the lockdown.  

The Karnataka government has imposed institutional quarantine on persons traveling in from outside the state, particularly by flight from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh.

Bengaluru, Jan 23: Expressing shock over the blast which left him and his supporters injured yesterday, Shantinagar MLA NA Haris today said that the incident cannot be brushed aside as a firecracker blast and appealed to the state government to inquire into the incident.

Recovering from the injuries sustained on his leg, Haris was discharged from St Philomena's Hospital on Thursday afternoon. 

Interacting with mediapersons outside his residence in Shantinagar, Haris said, “It wasn’t a cracker but a ball-like object that was hurled at me. Since my childhood, I have been seeing crackers and the object that was thrown at me was certainly not a cracker. It had splinters and hard objects.”

He said, “I have been representing the constituency for over 12-years and had no rivalry with anyone. Barring political ideology during elections, all the leaders in our constituency have been cooperative with each other. Yet, we do not know what the intention was or who was behind the incident.”

Revealing that home minister Basavaraj Bommai had called him to enquire about his condition at the hospital Haris said, “I have also briefed the home minister and explained to him what exactly happened. I have full faith in the police and will cooperate with the police during the investigation.” Haris said that doctors have advised him three to four-days of rest.