Nearly 11K students cannot write SSLC exam in Karnataka due to attendance shortage

Bengaluru, Jul 26: Paying tributes to the martyrs of Kargil war on its 21st anniversary, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Sunday said his government always stood by the soldiers and families of those who laid down their lives to protect the borders of the country.

"The government is always committed to the welfare of the soldiers. Karnataka has formed a separate department for the welfare of the soldiers and their families. We always stand with the families of the martyred soldiers," he said. He was addressing soldiers after paying tributes to the martyrs of the Kargil war at an official function organised on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas at the National Military Memorial Park in the city by the Sainik Welfare and Resettlement Department under the state Home Department. 

Yediyurappa described as a symbol of India's valour and sacrifices the Kargil Vijay Diwas, observed to commemorate its victory over Pakistan in the war that ended on July 26, 1999 with recapture of the territory in Kargil. He said the state government has given due compensation to the families of the Kargil martyrs and the soldiers who were injured.

Recalling the conflict, Yediyurappa said Pakistan had set its eyes on grabbing the vast terrains of Kargil and Drass sector in Jammu and Kashmir but the Indian soldiers successfully fought a deadly battle at a height of 17,000 feet where the temperature goes up to minus 30 degrees celsius.

"The sacrifices of our soldiers will remain etched in our memories forever. The tale of the 527 soldiers, who sacrificed their lives to save our country, is a constant source of inspiration for our youth," the Chief Minister said. He also noted Karnataka's contributions to the Indian army and said the state had given two Generals, one Field Marshall, many army officers and innumerable soldiers to protect the country's borders. 

Bengaluru, Jun 18: The Karnataka police has arrested a German national wanted for kidnapping and causing bodily harm to a person in his home country, an official said on Wednesday. The person was also found to be overstaying on an expired visa, which police said that it appeared that the visa had been tampered with to look more current.

"On receipt of credible information by the CID Interpol Division officers, the Red Corner Notice subject, the German national Alexander Bruno Wehnelt, was traced at Hulimangala village," a police official told media persons.

Hulimangala is on the outskirts of Bengaluru city.

Alexander, 55, escaped from Germany and took shelter in Bengaluru.

The Interpol Division of CBI NCB (Central Bureau of Intelligence, Narcotics Control Bureau) in New Delhi had communicated to the Interpol liaison officer in Karnataka's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) about Alexander, directing extensive search measures to trace the criminal at large.

The Narcotics Control Bureau of Wiesbaden in Germany was on the hunt for Wehnelt for the crimes he committed in 2015, and have finally found him five years later.

"A special team of officers was constituted by the CID - Interpol division under the supervision of ADGP (Additional Director General of Police) B. Dayananda and the Interpol liaison officer and efforts were made to trace the subject," said the official.

On Monday, the police received credible information leading to his arrest.

"It was learnt that his visa had expired in 2016 and he tried to show a visa which was issued in December 2019 which had expired on Saturday, June 13," said the official.

Prima facie, it appeared that Alexander had tampered with his visa and the police are probing on that front as well.

He was handed over to Hebbagodi Police Station in Bengaluru Urban, for his overstay and a criminal case has been registered against him, under the Foreigners Act.

Bengaluru, May 19: Containment zones in Karnataka will be much smaller in size under the latest lockdown norms. However, rules and loopholes will be tightened and action against violators will be stringent in order to check the spread of the disease.

Revised guidelines issued by the Centre to the state, reveal containment zones are delineated based on mapping of cases and contacts. Intensive action will be carried out in these areas with the aim of breaking the chain of transmission. Therefore, the area of a containment zone should be appropriately defined by the district administration/local urban bodies with technical inputs at local level.

The health department is considering shrinking the size of containment zones from the existing 100 metres to open up more space for economic activities. Medical education minister K Sudhakar, also a member of the Covid taskforce, said additional chief secretary (health department) Javed Akthar will issue a new definition of a containment zone after the Covid-19 taskforce holds its next meeting.

“We are planning to further shrink it and restrict containment zones to an apartment complex, independent house or even a lane where the Covid-19 patient resides,” Sudhakar said. He went on to say bigger containment zones will impede businesses and normal activities in the vicinity, something which the government wants to avoid.

The minister said Karnataka will also do away with colour-coding districts. “With restrictions being relaxed for almost all activities, it does not make sense to pursue with colour codes. It is either containment zone or outside containment zone,” he said.

In rural areas, the minister said containment zones will be identified by the taluk heads. Government sources say it is difficult to restrict activities to certain areas or smaller location in rural areas as farmers and people will have to travel to the outskirts of their villages for their livelihood.

An official said, a containment operation (large outbreak or cluster) is deemed successful when no case is reported in 28 days from the containment zone.