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Mangaluru: Coffee tycoon Siddhartha goes missing from Netravati Bridge; massive search underway

coastaldigest.com web desk
July 30, 2019

Mangaluru, Jul 30: VG Siddhartha, the son-in-law of former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna and founder of country's largest coffee chain Cafe Coffee Day, is reportedly missing since Monday night. 

There are reports doing the rounds that the billionaire who faced series of I-T raids last year jumped off the bridge into Netravati River near Tokkottu. Though a search operation is on, the police are not in a position to confirm if he jumped into the river. 

Sources said Siddhartha had arrived at 8pm from Bengaluru in his SUV and had asked the driver to go to the Netravati bridge near Tokkottu.

"Yesterday, he had left Bengaluru saying he was going to Sakleshpur. But on the way, he told the driver to go to Mangaluru. After reaching the Netravati bridge, he got down from the car. Siddhartha asked his driver to drive a little further and stop. He will come walking. However, he didn't return. The dog squad used to locate him too stopped at the middle of the bridge," Mangaluru city police commissioner Sandeep Patil said.

The police have summoned helicopters and coast guards to facilitate the search operations. Over 200 personnel, including 25 swimmers, have been pressed into service to locate him, the officer added. 

Siddhartha's companies employ around 30,000 people across India. Siddhartha, son of a coffee plantation owner, dabbled in stock trading before starting Café Coffee Day with one outlet in Bengaluru in 1996, which has now emerged as the largest chain of coffee shops in India. He recently sold his stakes in a software company Mindtree for about Rs 3,000 crore. He was recently in the news for being in talks with Coca-Cola to sell CCD.

Cafe Coffe Day clocked a revenue of Rs 1,777 crore and Rs 1,814 crore in financial years 2018 and 2019, respectively, and eyeing Rs 2,250 crore by March 2020. As of March 2019, CCD runs 1,752 cafes across India.

Shares of Coffee Day Enterprises shed 19.99% in the early trade on July 30 after Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha was reported missing since the night of July 29. CCD stock opened at a loss of 19.99% or 38.50 points to Rs 154.05 on BSE, also the stock's all time and new 52 week low. There are only sellers in the stock and no buyers standing.

Also Read:

Siddhartha was eager to sell his Cafe Coffee Day stake to Coca-Cola?

Cops grill Siddhartha’s car driver at undisclosed location

Karnataka BJP MPs meet Amit Shah; seek help to trace ‘missing’ Siddhartha

‘Utterly fishy. Unbelievable. Siddhartha called me on July 28. He wanted to meet me’: D K Shivakmuar

'I have failed as an entrepreneur… I gave up': V G Siddhartha’s alleged letter goes viral

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Mahesh Bhandary
 - 
Tuesday, 30 Jul 2019

He was a inspiration to many, but given a wrong message behind his suicide.

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News Network
April 18,2020

Udupi, Apr 18: The Adamaru Mutt and Mutt-owned educational institutions donated fifty five lakhs, fifty five thousand, five hundred and fifty five rupees to the PM-CARES Fund on Friday.

Sri Vishwakapriyattirtha Sripada, while donating the amount, delivered the message that in these difficult times in our country, the government has no sources of tax revenue but the cost of various departments especially public health expenses are increasing.

We leave three meals a week and distribute the money saved to those in need. We pray that India becomes the first COVID-19-free country in the world with all our efforts.

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News Network
July 28,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 28: After the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) reduced the syllabi for Classes 9 to 12 due to COVID-19 pandemic, the Karnataka government has followed the suit. The Department of Public Instruction has omitted the chapters on legendary south Indian rulers Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan from the textbooks of Class 7 in their attempt to reduce syllabus for state board schools by 30 per cent. 

The department, however, has decided to retain similar chapters on Tipu Sultan in 6th and 10th Classes, though the syllabus in text books for all classes from 1 to 10th has been trimmed. 

The trimmed textbooks uploaded on the website of the Department of State Education Research and Training (DSERT) by Karnataka state Textbook Society revealed removal of chapters on Tipu Sultan for the seventh grade.

Justifying the decision, officials said, "students study similar chapters in Class 6 and more in the 10th grade." Yet another senior official from the Text Book Society said, "Trimming does not mean we have removed half of the syllabus from textbooks. It is only keeping in mind the repetition we have condensed the chapters. In case students study about a particular dynasty in higher grades, then the same had been removed from lower grades."

A few months ago, there was an uproar over dropping of content on Tipu Sultan and MLAs from the ruling BJP also demanded the same and petitioned to the Chief Minister. Even an expert committee led by Prof Baraguru Ramachandrappa suggested to not drop any content on the historic figure. However, the department still decided to drop lessons from one of the classes while keeping the syllabus short for the next 120 active academic days.

Earlier this month, a controversy had erupted over the CBSE's decision to omit topics like federalism, secularism, citizenship, etc while reducing the syllabus for Classes 9 to 12. The education board had issued a detailed clarification later, stating that topics claimed to be dropped "are either being covered by the rationalised syllabus or in the Alternative Academic Calendar of NCERT".

"The rationalisation of syllabus up to 30 per cent has been undertaken by the Board for nearly 190 subjects of class 9 to 12 for the academic session 2020-21 as a one-time measure only. The objective is to reduce the exam stress of students due to the prevailing health emergency situation and prevent learning gaps," it said.

Last week, the Congress in Uttar Pradesh expressed its concern over 'deliberate and systematic' deletions of chapters related to the freedom struggle and the party's role in it from the Class 10-12 syllabi of the Secondary Education Board.

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coastaldigest.com news network
July 15,2020

Newsroom, Jul 15: At least three students have committed suicide in different parts of Karnataka after failing in II PUC examinations, the results of which were announced yesterday. 

Bhumika, an 18-year-old girl hailing from Mallipattene near Arakalagud town in Hassan district killed herself within hours after the announcement of results. 

Depressed over her failure in the examination, she consumed poison, the police sources said. 

In a separate incident, 18-year-old Chitra, who failed the II PUC examinations, committed suicide at her native Chikkamarasa village in Shivamogga district. 

She was studying in Government PU College in Kumsi and after knowing about her result in the final PU exam, she hanged herself to death at her house.

Similarly, an 18-year-old boy from Harihar taluk in Davanagere district committed suicide in his house after the announcement of the PUC results.

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