Karnataka Minister for Large, Medium Industries, and Infrastructure Development M B Patil

Bengaluru: The State-Level Single Window Clearance Committee (SLSWCC) on Friday approved 88 projects worth Rs 4,071.11 crore investments in the state.

These projects are expected to generate employment for approximately 10,585 people across the state. The SLSWCC was chaired by Karnataka Minister for Large, Medium Industries, and Infrastructure Development M B Patil.

Among the notable approvals are proposals from Aratt One World Pvt. Ltd and Dairy Classic Ice Creams Private Limited, which plan to invest Rs 485 crore and Rs 285 crore respectively, the Minister’s office said in a release.

Patil said that the approved projects would promote equitable investment across various regions of the state.

He noted that the committee approved 14 major large and medium projects with capital investments exceeding Rs 50 crore, amounting to Rs 2,031.76 crore and expected to create employment for around 3,302 people.

Additionally, 68 new projects with investments ranging from Rs 15 crore to Rs 50 crore were approved, from which Rs 1,355.07 crores will be capital investment and employment opportunities will be available to approximately 5,049 people, the Minister said, adding that six additional capital investment projects, amounting to Rs 684.28 crore, were also approved. These will create employment opportunities for about 2,234 people.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar recently alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi refused a proposal made by the Karnataka government to grant a zone like GIFT (Gujarat International Finance Tec) City in the state.

While speaking at the inauguration of the Knowledge, Wellbeing, and Innovation (KWIN) City in Vidhana Soudha on Thursday, DK Shivakumar stated that CM Siddaramaiah and he had appealed to the PM to a grant a GIFT City for Karnataka during their previous visit to Delhi. “He refused, saying that it will not be allowed, and that the existing GIFT City will remain the only financial hub,” the Deputy CM was quoted as saying by Deccan Herald.

GIFT City was established in April 2015 in Gandhinagar. Spread over 886 acres, it hosts global financial institutions, special economic zones and gives 100 percent tax exemption for 10 consecutive years.

DK Shivakumar mentioned that the KWIN City will not be a concrete jungle as it is built with a purpose. He highlighted that it is a sustainable city aimed to enhance the quality of life for its residents.

“Let’s all work together, and create a more vibrant Karnataka, and India will grow stronger, with Karnataka being the base. To make this happen, we have to take KWIN City to level in terms of development,” said Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru Development Minister.

Karnataka’s ambitious KWIN City is expected to come between Dobbaspete and Doddaballapura. The key districts of KWIN City are Knowledge, Health, Innovation, and Research. Spread across 5800 acres, it is expected to generate opportunities across sectors like healthcare, biotechnology, Artificial Intelligence, and advanced manufacturing.

KWIN City is designed to accommodate 500,000 residents and would harness half of its water requirements through an advanced rainwater harvesting system, with an additional 20% supplied by borewells. It will also feature a solar farm spanning 465 acres, capable of generating 0.69 million MWh to meet its entire energy requirements.

A meeting was held on Monday under the leadership of Minorities Welfare and Wakf Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan regarding the pros and cons of the proposed Wakf Amendment Bill by the central government.
Representatives of the community and religious leaders participated in the meeting.

In light of the arrival of the Joint Parliamentary Committee for opinion gathering on October 1, significant opposition to the Wakf Amendment Bill was expressed during the meeting. It was decided that five delegations, including the Wakf Board, Minority Commission, and religious leaders, would present their objections and opinions before the committee.

Minister Rahim Khan, Chief Minister’s Political Secretary Nasir Ahmed, MLAs Iqbal Hussain, Abdul Jabbar, Balkis Banu, Wakf Board President Anwar Basha, Maulana Maqsood Imran, Maulana Tanveer Hashmi, Maulana Shafi Sadi, and several other key figures were present at the meeting.

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara

Bengaluru: Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday vowed to apprehend those responsible for the gruesome murder of a 29-year-old woman here, as soon as possible.

Mahalakshmi’s body was found chopped into over 50 pieces and stuffed into a refrigerator in her flat at Vyalikaval in the city.

Addressing reporters, Parameshwara said, “Aready some information has been collected, which I cannot reveal now, but we will soon nab those involved in it.”

“… an individual — they say is the one (involved), but unless we have more information, we can’t really confirm. He is from West Bengal, they say. As early as possible we will secure (those involved).”

The maggot-infested body of Mahalakshmi was discovered by her mother and elder sister at her home on Saturday.

Responding to a question about reports that one person was already taken into custody in connection with the case, the Home Minister said, “police bring in suspects and inquire them. If somebody confesses (to the crime), then they will be taken into custody.”

The deceased woman’s estranged husband has expressed suspicion about a man known to her.

To another query on women’s safety, the Minister said already a lot of precautions and measures are being taken for the safety of women in Bengaluru.

“In fact the Nirbhaya programme is implemented, and we are doing several things… definitely we are very careful about it and we take a lot of precautions. We have installed CCTVs at the place where a lot of women visit.

We have taken steps, but still we don’t know how to term these (incidents), whether we call it domestic or whether we call it something else. We have already alerted all the police stations to be extra careful about women safety….we need to put more effort on this, and we will do it,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda said the suspect has been identified and he is an outsider.

“So far as Vyalikaval case (Mahalakshmi murder case) is concerned, we are investigating from all the angles. The prime suspect who is likely to have committed this ghastly offence is identified. The only thing is we are yet to apprehend him. As and when the person is caught and the interrogation is done, then we will be able to provide further details,” Dayananda told media here.

According to police sources, several investigation teams have been formed to trace the culprits. Some teams have fanned out to various parts of India to arrest those involved in the crime.

The victim’s family demanded justice for her.

“The owner of the building informed me that there was foul smell coming from the house. When I came and opened the door I saw the body of Mahalakshmi cut into pieces. I saw her for the last time on Rakshabandhana festival. Since then her phone was switched off,” Mahalakshmi’s mother Meena Rana told reporters.

Seeking punishment for the accused, the victim’s elder sister said, “Who cuts a woman into pieces like this? I saw her a year ago. Now I saw her in pieces.”

HD Kumaraswamy

Guwahati: Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Monday said he would soon visit tea gardens, owned by public sector enterprise Andrew Yule, to revive its estates as workers are facing immense hardship.

Kumaraswamy, the minister of steel and heavy industries, thanked Assam Industries Minister Bimal Borah for apprising him of various challenges being faced by the tea gardens and the need to support the management to alleviate suffering of workers.

“We are concerned about the economic challenges and hardship of the tea gardens owned by Andrew Yule Group in Assam and its impact on the wage earners,” Kumaraswamy said at a press conference here.

The tea garden wage earners will also get a 20 per cent Durga Puja bonus, like workers of other gardens, he said.

Referring to his recent visit to the Cement Corporation of India Ltd factory at Bokajan in Karbi Anglong district, Kumaraswamy said there was a plan for the revival of the cement industry in the state by investing Rs 700 crore.

He also emphasised on the need for a cement manufacturing unit in the northeastern states.

On the current development of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) policy utilisation in Assam, the union minister said more than Rs 2,000 crore would be invested for battery charging stations and nearly 70,000 such facilities will be set up across the country.

More than 18,000 e-buses will also be purchased to fulfil the goal of carbon emission reduction, Kumaraswamy added.

Nasheman news

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday dismissed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s plea challenging the Governor’s sanction to prosecute him in connection with the alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam.

Justice M. Nagaprasanna stated that the complaint required investigation and upheld the Governor’s authority to grant approval for prosecution.

The court also noted that it is the complainants’ duty to seek approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the Governor has the discretion to take an independent decision.

Bengaluru: BJP MLA Muniratna has been arrested once again, this time in connection with a rape case.

After being held in judicial custody at Parappana Agrahara Jail over a caste slur case, he was released on conditional bail just yesterday.

Reports suggest that Muniratna’s lawyer submitted the bail order to the jail authorities, and shortly after the formalities were completed, officers from Kaggalipura Police Station in Ramnagar district took him into custody.

The Ramnagar police had been stationed near the jail since Thursday night, awaiting his release in order to arrest him.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Wednesday said simultaneous elections are not possible in a democracy like India.

The state Congress President stressed on the need for “bringing in consensus and unanimity in opinion among all parties” in this regard.

Moving ahead with its “one nation, one election” plan, the government on Wednesday accepted a high-level panel’s recommendations for holding simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies and local bodies in a phased manner after a countrywide consensus-building exercise.

“The ‘one nation, one election’ that they are planning to do, aimed at saving the government’s money, is not possible in a democratic country like ours. Who thought about ‘Operational Lotus’? (toppling non-BJP governments by luring opposition MLAs), it is BJP. They are the ones who caused several elections. How can it (multiple elections) be stopped?” Shivakumar said.

Speaking to reporters here, he alleged that the BJP is trying to destabilise several opposition-ruled State governments.

“As regional parties are growing, they don’t want them to grow, so they are making these efforts. All parties should give an equal opportunity in this country,” Shivakumar added.

In its report submitted to the government in March, just before the general election was announced, the panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind had recommended implementing “one nation, one election” in two phases — simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies in the first phase and elections for local bodies like panchayats and municipal bodies within 100 days of the general election in the second phase.

It also recommended a common electoral roll, which would need coordination between the Election Commission of India and state election commissions.

Noting that ‘one nation, one election’ was in place earlier, Shivakumar said: “In our state we have held elections (both Lok Sabha and assembly) together in the past, but was it possible later? Cabinets (of state) decided to go for polls either three or six months early sometimes, in some states Assemblies were dissolved, all these things are there. There should be clarity.”

Without a two-thirds majority, the central government’s decision to go ahead is not right, he said. “There is no such option in democracy….Bring consensus among all parties and let there be a unanimous opinion, without unanimous opinion, such decisions are a waste.”

Shivamogga: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has alleged that the BJP is conspiring to politically and physically eliminate Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Speaking at a press conference at his Home Office, Krishna, on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah expressed alarm over the threats to Gandhi’s life, urging immediate legal action against those involved.

The Chief Minister emphasized that Gandhi, who comes from a family that has sacrificed much for the nation, remains undeterred by these threats. “Rahul Gandhi is from a family of martyrs, including former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. Despite the dangers, he continues his fight for the country,” said Siddaramaiah.

He accused the BJP of threatening Gandhi, with some even warning that he might meet the same fate as his grandmother, Indira Gandhi. Siddaramaiah also pointed to remarks by a Union Minister of State for Railways, who allegedly called Gandhi a terrorist.

Further intensifying his criticism, Siddaramaiah condemned Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad (Shinde faction) for reportedly offering a ₹11 lakh reward for cutting out Gandhi’s tongue. Gaikwad allegedly made death threats against Congress workers as well. The Chief Minister demanded immediate criminal action against Gaikwad, calling for his arrest.

Siddaramaiah criticized the BJP for its inaction against such threats. He condemned a minister from Uttar Pradesh for labeling Rahul Gandhi as the country’s “number one terrorist,” noting that no strict measures had been taken against him.

In a broader political attack, Siddaramaiah predicted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not complete his five-year term, citing current political dynamics. He suggested that key allies, including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, would soon part ways with the central government.

Siddaramaiah also addressed the controversy surrounding BJP MLA Muniratana, who has been accused of making derogatory remarks against women, the Dalit community, and the Vokkaliga community. Legal action has been initiated, and Muniratana has been arrested and presented in court.

The Chief Minister called for the formation of a special investigation team to probe the case further.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Former Prime Minister and JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda

Bengaluru: Former Prime Minister and JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda on Tuesday greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his 74th birthday and wished he may grow from strength to strength to successfully lead India in this third term.

Modi was born on September 17, 1950, in a small town in Gujarat.

Taking to social media platform ‘X’, Gowda said, “My very warm birthday greetings to Prime Minister. May he grow from strength to strength to successfully lead India in his third term. May lord almighty bless him with good health and a long life.”