Mangaluru: Cong leader's car damaged by miscreants in Ullal

Mangaluru, Jul 2: Mangaluru BJP Corporator Manohar Shetty, who entered a manhole to clean a drain, said that he did it to avoid waterlogging ahead of monsoon as people were facing several problems for the past few years.

"In my ward, there is a rainwater drain at Kadri Kambla junction and for the past few years, there was a waterlogging problem due to trash water used to collect and vehicles used to find it difficult to pass in that area," Shetty said.

"Since there was a lot of trash it had to be cleared to avoid waterlogging. We changed our dresses, and then I along with my three party workers entered manhole and cleared the trash," he said.

The Mangaluru BJP Corporator further said that it was not a publicity stunt, and he cleaned the drain to solve the problem of people. "During elections, I had promised people to get the drain cleaned. Since monsoon was coming; something had to be done; we did not do it for publicity but to solve a problem," he said.

Bengaluru, Jan 8: The second instalment of flood relief funds from the Centre, announced on Monday, has left BS Yediyurappa less than cheerful, with the chief minister insisting that it is barely adequate. The CM on Tuesday said he will urge the Union government to release more.

On Monday, the Centre announced it will release Rs 669.8 crore in addition to the Rs 1,200 crore it had released earlier towards flood relief and rehabilitation. The total sum is a small fraction of the loss, which the government pegged at a staggering Rs 38,000 crore.

“The Centre has released assistance in two instalments so far, but it is inadequate given the magnitude of the damage. I will request for more funds and I am confident the Centre will oblige,” Yediyurappa told reporters.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited the state last week, Yediyurappa had urged him — even openly at a function — to release funds. This followed several pleas over the past four months, which barely drew a response from the Centre. Now, the CM himself suggests it’s barely a drop in the ocean.

The opposition has been criticizing both Yediyurappa and the Centre for their handling of the situation and on Tuesday, leader of the opposition Siddaramaiah of the Congress criticised the CM for “misguiding people” on the sum released by the Centre.

Siddaramaiah tweeted, “Reports from State govt officials say only Rs 669 cr of addl funds are released in 2nd instalment as opposed to the claim of Rs 1,870 cr by Karnataka BJP leaders. At a time when manufacturing industries are closing, BJP’s fake news factory is running at full potential ".

In another tweet, he said, “Moved by the plea of chief minister, Yediyurappa, Prime Minister Narendra Modi released an additional Rs 669.8 crore, taking the total amount to Rs 1,869.8 crore. BJP leaders, who are devotees of the god of lies, attempts to depict the total relief amount as 1200+1869.85 = Rs 3,069 cr is ridiculous.”

A high-level committee chaired by Union home minister Amit Shah had sanctioned the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) funds on Monday. While the Press Information Bureau claimed Rs 1,869 crore was approved on Monday, state government officials clarified that the figure included the Rs 1,200 crore released in October.

Meanwhile, sources say the two instalments is all the assistance the state can expect from the Centre towards flood relief. Sources say the Rs 1,870 crore is roughly 60% of the funding — Rs 3,000 cr— which was supposed to be allocated for Karnataka, based on an inter-ministerial team’s assessment of losses in the state.

“Compared to other states for the same period, Karnataka has received the highest amount in flood relief. We cannot expect more,” said a revenue department official, who said the government will not approach the Centre for a special package.

However, revenue minister R Ashoka said the state will pitch for the entire Rs 3,000 crore. “The state government will pursue the matter with the Centre until it releases the entire Rs 3,000 crore. The state government will cover the remainder of the Rs 38,000 crore loss. We will not go back on our word,” Ashoka said. Incidentally, the state has spent about Rs 6,000 crore on relief and rehabilitation so far.

Mangaluru, Feb 5: The New Mangalore Port implemented the Centre's Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) by screening the crew of cargo ships and passengers of Cruise Vessel for the highly contagious and deadly disease Coronavirus.

Sources in the port said that screening was being carried out at the harbour since the past few days, as a precautionary measure. All the 1,800 passengers and 786 crew of Cruise Vessel 'Costa Victoria,' which stopped at the port, were screened.

Arrangements were also made for screening foreign nationals arriving at the Mangalore International Airport (MIA). 

Besides screening, passengers were also made aware of the Coronavirus and the precautionary steps to be taken.