People of Bantwal will make you MLA once again: Poojary tells Ramanath Rai

Bengaluru, Jun 24: About 8,48,203 students will appear in the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) examination tomorrow, i.e., June 24, said Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu on Wednesday.

Students have been advised to report to the examination centre three-hour before the commencement of the examination i.e., at 07:30 am. The examination will commence at 10:30 am.

Early entry to the centres will also help maintain social distancing that is very much essential during the pandemic, minister for primary and secondary education S Suresh Kumar said.

"SSLC exams to take place tomorrow. About 8,48,203 students will write the exam. Social distancing needs to be followed and the mask should be used. Minister of Education and I have already held a lot of meetings. Students from containment zones will be carefully handled," said Sriramulu.

Commenting upon the situation arising in the state due to COVID-19, Sriramulu said, "There is a panel of experts to decide about lockdown. There has been an opinion that the COVID-19 test should be increased. Workers, traders, and others should be categorised in 15 categories and tests must be conducted," he added.

Sriramulu further said that there will be a meeting of task force on the coming Monday.

"All the issues will be brought to the notice of the Chief Minister at the task force meeting, then CM will take a call on what needs to be done," he said.

Meanwhile, Suresh Kumar, Minister of Education inspected the schools and places where SSLC exams will be held.

Earlier Karnataka Education Minister S Suresh Kumar had announced that SSLC examinations, which were stayed in view of the coronavirus pandemic, will be conducted 'between June 25 and July 4' in the state.

According to the Union Health Ministry, Karnataka has 9,721 COVID-19 cases including 150 fatalities.

New Delhi, Feb 1: The budget is a little more demanding of the non-resident Indian. Firstly, to be categorized a non-resident, an Indian now has to stay abroad for 240 days, against 182 previously. In other words, an Indian national, to claim the non-resident status, can’t stay in India for 120 days or more in a year.

“We've made changes in Income Tax Act where if an Indian citizen stays out of the country for more than 182 days, he becomes non-resident,” said Revenue Secy Ajay Bhushan Pandey. “Now in order to become non-resident, he has to stay out of the country for 240 days.”

The second rule is more deadly: a non-resident Indian, who is not taxed in the foreign country, will become taxable in India.

“If any Indian citizen is not a resident of any country in the world, he'll be deemed to be a resident of India and his worldwide income will be taxed,” said Pandey.

"It's a very big disadvantage for Indians residing overseas only to save on tax,"  said Dinesh Kanabar of Dhruva Advisors. He expects that many Indians stay abroad in countries, where the income tax is low or nil such as Dubai. Now they will be taxed in India if they are in the income tax bracket.

For Indians, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman revised income tax rats and proposed new tax slabs.

The new income tax rates will, however, not allow exemptions under Section 80C. Home loan exemption, insurance exemptions, the standard deduction will also not stay under the regime.

"The new tax regime will be optional and the taxpayers will be given the choice to either remain in the old regime with exemptions and deductions or opt for the new reduced tax rate without those exemptions," Sitharaman said while unveiling Budget.

Mangaluru, May 27: Mangaluru MLA U T Khader today urged Dakshina Kannada MP and Karnataka BJP chief Nalin Kumar Kateel to pave the way for immediate repatriation of Mangalureans stranded across Gulf countries.

The development comes amidst reports that lack of preparedness on part of the authorities concerned in Dakshina Kannada compelled the Centre to delay the operation of repatriation flights from various Gulf to Mangaluru International Airport under Vande Bharat Mission.

Lakhs of people from Mangaluru region (coastal Karnataka) alone are working in middle eastern countries like Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar. Thousands of them are currently stranded thanks to covid-19 lockdown and are helplessly waiting for repatriation.

Speaking to coastaldigest.com, Mr Khader said he already spoke to Mr Kateel and brought to his notice the plight of Mangalureans in Saudi Arabia and other gulf countries. "There are a large number of pregnant women, senior citizens and patients who need immediate repatriation. It is the responsibility of the elected representatives and district administration to pave the way for the repatriation of our people and arrange quarantine facilities for them," he said. 

"Mr Kaeel is not only MP of Dakshina Kannada. He is also the chief of Karnataka's ruling party. Hence, he must play a crucial role in facilitating the return of Kannadigas in general and Mangalureans in particular," Mr Khader said.