Archives for 2017

Bengaluru: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the murder of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh on Saturday released three sketches of two persons suspected to be her killers.

“Three sketches of two suspects have been made on the basis of their description by eyewitness. Two sketches of one suspect were made by two sketch-makers as per eyewitness account,” SIT Head and Inspector General of Police (IGP) B.K. Singh told reporters here.

Lankesh, 55, editor of Kannada weekly tabloid “Gauri Lankesh Patrike” was shot dead outside her house in the city’s southwest suburb on the night of September 5, sparking outrage and nationwide protests.

“We have got video clips of a motorcycle rider who is suspected to be involved in the commission of the offence,” asserted Singh.

Giving an account of the investigation conducted over the last one month, Singh said the suspects, aged between 25-35 years, were residing in the city for at least one week before they committed the crime.

They carried out a “recce” around Lankesh’s home prior to committing the crime, he said.

“We request the public to help us find them or their hideouts in the city, across the state or country,” added Singh.

(IANS)

Bengaluru: A 16-year-old girl drowned in an overflowing drain today, taking the death toll from rain- related incidents in the city to 10.

The incident happened at Krishnappa Garden here. Narasamma had gone to attend nature’s call and she accidentally slipped into the drain.

Her body was later recovered at some distance from the slum where her family resides.

The family hailed from a northern district of Karnataka and they worked as construction labourers in the city.

Meanwhile, the city civic body Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike along with the National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force fished out the body of 22-year-old Pushpa from a storm-water drain at Kumbalgodu this morning.

Pushpa and her mother Ningamma were washed away in the storm water drain following heavy rains in the city on Friday night.

Officials involved in search operations said efforts were on to recover Ningamma’s body.

The 10 deaths in the past 15 days in mishaps due to potholes and incessant rains have triggered a political slugfest between ruling the Congress and the BJP.

Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah hit out at the BJP for politicising the issue.

He said his government has taken up the repair work and clearance of the 850-km storm water drain network in the city by allocating Rs 800 crore.

“No government including the BJP has done it in the past. Now they are playing politics over deaths,” he said.

Siddaramaiah said he had been residing in Bengaluru since 1983 and he had never seen such large scale rains.

About 46 days in the last two months gauged heavy rains, he said, adding “our drainage system and storm water drains do not have the capacity to bear it”.

BJP state president Yeddyurappa who visited the rain affected areas yesterday had squarely blamed Siddaramaiah for the deaths.

Reports quoting MeT department officials suggested the city has witnessed about 1,620 mm of rainfall this year so far, breaking the record of about 1,600 mm of precipitation in 2005.

The department has predicted generally cloudy sky in and around Bengaluru, one or two spells of rain and heavy showers in some areas in the next 48 hours. Meanwhile, there were reports of heavy rains from different parts of the state.

In neighbouring Ramanagara, a 35-year-old man was washed away as he slipped into an overflowing pit.

(PTI)

Abu Dhabi Week, a high profile event will celebrate & promote the emirate in India. The Department of Culture & Tourism, Abu Dhabi, the body that promotes the emirate’s tourism & cultural heritage proposition is all set to organize the 1st ever Abu Dhabi Week in India. Aiming to establish Abu Dhabi as a pre – eminent visitor destination that combines a mix of culture, art, entertainment & sports, this multi – city exhibition will be held on 27th Oct 2017, 28th Oct 2017 & 29th Oct 2017 in Mumbai & 3rd Nov 2017, 4th Nov 2017 & 5th Nov 2017 in Delhi.

The event represents a great opportunity for consumers, trade agents & stake holders to be present under 1 roof, and for Abu Dhabi to be showcased as a highly significant destination for the Indian market. The show will be a dynamic, family leisure entertainment destination and one which also affords plentiful business opportunities.

Saif Saeed Ghobash, Director General, Department of Culture & Tourism, Abu Dhabi, averred, “India is a key tier one priority for Abu Dhabi and represents our 2nd largest international source market for hotel guests. Abu Dhabi Week, organized with the Department’s Delhi team of tourism experts, will encourage our partners & stake holders to capitalise on the rapid growth of Indian visitors choosing to explore the emirate.

Saif Saeed Ghobash explains further, “As well as positioning the emirate as a holiday destination, we will underline the message that Abu Dhabi is an ideal business locale for the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions (MICE) industry with a superb choice of venues for delegations from India.”
Abu Dhabi Week will offer a variety of interactive experiences;.virtualreality booths will provide life like encounters of Ferrari World, Desert Safari & Etihad Airways flights to give a hands on sense of remarkable Abu Dhabi experience.A glimpse of Louvre Abu Dhabi will also be shown at the event, with the museum all set for its grand opening on 11th Nov, 2017.

As an added point of interest, renowned Abu Dhabi chef, Khulood, will be performing a live cooking masterclass in Mumbai, presenting traditional Emirati cuisine and will also host an interactive session with the audience, familiarizing them with gastronomy of the emirate.

Bejan Dinshaw, Country Manager, Department of Culture & Tourism averred, “The Department has always been on the forefront of promoting the culture & the heritage of Abu Dhabi & also the ever growing tourism to the Emirate. Abu Dhabi Week is one such project through which we would like to bring the tourism fraternity & the erstwhile consumers together to showcase the vibrant world of Abu Dhabi and further strengthen our philosophy. I foresee this event as an encouragement of tourism & trade between India & Abu Dhabi”.

Besides this, the event will also have contests & exciting competitions to engage the visitors and giveaways like stay vacation packages, rides in Ferraris and several other prizes. Food stalls offering famous delicacies, musical performances by different artists, kids’ area with varied activities for children, live paintings & also a selfie booth with UAE skyline, will also be some of the highlights at the event.

Tourism has been a silent force fostering the relations between the 2 regions and has stimulated both economies. Abu Dhabi has welcomed 225,000 Indian hotel guests between Aug, 2017 and the start of the year, 2017 & also a year on year increase of 9%. Etihad Airways & Jet Airways operate 282 flights a week from 13 Indian destinations witnessing an average length of stay of 2.8 nights.