Twitter briefly blocks Karnataka BJP’s official account over provocative tweets

Mangaluru, Mar 5: Chairman of Karnataka Christian Development Committee (CDC) Joylus DSouza on Thursday welcomed the allocation of a Rs 200-crore grant in the state budget for the development of the Christian community.

In his message to the Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa released to the media, DSouza said, "Christians in Karnataka welcome with gratitude the announcement of Rs 200-crore allocation for the community in the budget for fiscal 2020-21."

In 2011-12 fiscal also, Yediyurappa as Chief Minister had allocated a grant of Rs 50 crore for the community for the first time in the history of the state, he said.

The grant of Rs 200 crore this year shows Yediyurappas concern for the Christians.

I congratulate and offer my sincere gratitude on behalf of the Christian community of the state to Yediyurappa, DSouza said.

Bengaluru, Jan 8: The Karnataka government on Tuesday decided to adopt a no-fail approach for Class 7 examinations for government and private schools following the state syllabus.

The report card of a student doesn’t carry ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ remark, but points to his or her strengths and weaknesses in each subject in the exams, which will now be called Common Evaluation Exam.

The quality cell of the Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board (which conducts SSLC exams) will prepare question papers, which will be evaluated at the district level by government and private schoolteachers. The Class 7 exams will be held in March.

The Common Evaluation Exam follows the Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) currently practised under the Right to Education Act. “The formative and summative assessments (tests, projects and quizzes) will be held as usual,”KG Jagadeesha, commissioner of public instruction, said.

Edu dept to launch helpline by March

For the March exam, summative assessment 2 will be held with half the syllabus. Other modalities (exam duration and total marks) will be announced next week,” said KG Jagadeesha. The CCE system will continue for classes 8 and 9. The government hopes the exam and subsequent interventions in classes 8 and 9 will boost students’ confidence for crucial board examinations.

Minister S Suresh Kumar said, “More than an exam, it’s an evaluation of a child’s knowledge. The Belagavi division has done something similar. The Kalaburagi zone found mathematics and science were areas of concern; language was an issue in Urdumedium schools.” The minister said zilla panchayat CEOs have observed that intervention should start from class 8. “Keeping this in mind, we’ve started necessary preparation for class 7 exam ,” he added.

The education department will start a helpline by March for students, teachers, school managements and educationists to 11 raise problems on day-to-day issues.

Bengaluru, Feb 10: The Rashtriya Swyamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Sunday conducted a route march (Pathsanchalan) in Ramanagara to express solidarity with the anti-Christian forces protesting against a project to install 114-feet tall Jesus Christ statue atop Kapalabetta in Harobele town in Kanakapura taluk in Ramanagara district.

Hindutva ideologue Kalladka Prabhakara Bhat, who had led a rally in Kanakapura last month against the project, also led the Sunday’s route march and addressed a public meeting following the march.

“The district name is Ramanagara, but they have not nurtured the culture of Ram here. They have developed a strong culture of Ravana, which we pledged to dislodge,” Bhat told the gathering.

He said the Sangh Parivar will never allow the statue to come up as he said it would foment religious conversion that is rampant in Harobele.

“The so called Kapalabetta is of stones, which are revered as Lord Muneswara by the Hindus. This hillock must be named as Muneswara Betta,” he added.

Referring to the ongoing protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), Bhat said the law was brought in to protect the Hindu minority in Pakistan and Bangla Desh.

“The Muslims living in India hail Pakistan. But when we ask them to go to Pakistan, they will never go,” he took a jibe at the minority community.

Reacting to the RSS route march, senior Congress functionary DK Shivakunar, who represents Kanakapura assembly seat, said the Sangah Parivar is trying to disturb the communal harmony in the district and they will never succeed in it.

“The BJP is operating through the Sangh Parivar in the Ramanagara district. The party has won as may as 26 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, still they are doing all these things to keep their support base. People of Ramanagara will never back them,” said Shivakumar.