Bengaluru, Jan 4: The body of National Security Guard officer Lt Col Niranjan Kumar, who was martyred in an operation against terrorists at the Pathankot airbase, reached Bengaluru on Monday morning.
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah paid tribute the departed soul at city's BEL Ground. Also, school children and people came to pay their homage.
Niranjan’s mortal remains would be taken to his ancestral gome at Elambilassery in Palakkad district, Kerala for the last rites.
A 7-year-old Dalit girl who had gone missing from outside her residence in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkottai district on June 30 was found dead last evening.
Police sources said that the body with severe injures was found in a forest area bordering her village. The young girl had been sexually assaulted before the murder, according to police.
Victim’s neighbour, Raja, 25, who belongs to the Pandaram caste, has been arrested in connection with the incident.
While they have included murder charges in the First Information Report (FIR) against him, they are awaiting the post-mortem report to add sections of the Protection of Children against Sexual Offence Act (POCSO act) in the FIR.
"The girl was playing outside her home at 4pm. Her parents then found her missing and her father filed a complaint at the station at around 7pm. Efforts were then underway to find the girl," said an investigating official.
They found the minor's body in the forest area near her village on the evening of July 1. Her clothes were in a state of disarray and her face was severely injured.
"She has been beaten with sticks on the face and injuries are clearly visible. The post-mortem will reveal the actual cause of death," says an official from the district.
Police sources further add that the neighbour had found the minor roaming around the area on Wednesday and allegedly took advantage of the fact that she was alone.
"During inquiry he admitted that he had sexually assaulted and murdered the girl," says a police official from the district. "Further investigation is underway and we will have more clarity once we get the post mortem report," he adds.
Bengaluru, Feb 5: Despite installing a BJP government in Karnataka through disguised operation Kamala, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led union government has continued its step motherly attitude towards this south Indian state.
Under the new formula adopted to share central taxes among states Karnataka will be the worst-affected. Though the 15th Finance Commission has recommended a special grant of Rs 5,495 crore for the state for 2020-21, the Centre appears reluctant to pay up and instead has asked for the proposal to be reviewed.
During the Union budget, the report of the 14th Finance Commission headed by NK Singh for 2020-21 was tabled in Lok Sabha. It shows besides Karnataka, Telangana, Mizoram and Kerala saw their central tax share decrease, while Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra were top gainers.
Karnataka's share has decreased from 4.7% provided by the previous finance commission, to 3.6%. Acknowledging there is a steep decline in Karnataka's share from 2019-20, the finance commission has recommended a special grant of Rs 5,495 crore for the state.
Its share in 2019-20 was Rs 36,675 crore, but under the new formula, Karnataka will get only Rs 31,180 crore in 2020-21 from the divisible pool of Rs 8.5 lakh crore - a decline of 22.5%.
Also, the decrease for Karnataka comes on the back of a shortfall in 2019-20. While the state was entitled to Rs 39,806 crore from the divisible pool, it got only Rs 36,675 crore as the Centre suffered a tax revenue shortfall of Rs 1.5 lakh crore.
What is more disheartening though is the Centre's refusal to pay the special grant. Instead, the Union finance ministry has asked the finance commission to reconsider the recommendation. This has prompted the state to take up the issue with the Centre.
"The decline in central taxes devolution comes at a time when the state is going through a tough financial situation. Steps are being taken to ensure Karnataka gets justice," said chief secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar.
Officials said besides corrective measures for 2020-21, the focus will be on ensuring a fair share in subsequent years. However, Karnataka has little chance of getting its dues as the Centre is known to be prudent when distributing tax proceeds among states.
"The Centre has certain views on devolution. We have done our duty by submitting the interim report. It's up to the states to convince the Centre," said Ravi Kota, joint secretary of 15th Finance Commission.
Under the new formula, the commission changed the weightage for some of the six criteria it considers - population, area, forest cover, income distance, demographic performance and tax effort.
Bengaluru, May 9: With 41 new cases of COVID-19 reported on Saturday, the total number of positive cases in Karnataka has reached 794, said the state Health Department.
Out of the total number, 386 are discharged and 30 patients have passed away. The total number of active cases now in Karnataka is 377.
The total number of positive coronavirus cases across the country is 59,662, including 39,834 active cases.
Till now, 17,846 patients have been cured and discharged and 1,981 deaths have been recorded in the country, as per the data provided by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
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One brave son of Kerala lost life defending country.. while other sons busy smuggling gold from Dubai.
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