KARNATAKA

Between April 2017 and March 2022, theKarnatakagovernment received complaints or tip-offs about 10,352 attempts of child marriage and 9,261 (about 90%) were prevented. In all, 860 FIRs were registered against people involved in getting minors married or at least tried it in the same period.

Experts and officials point out that most child marriages occur largely due to POVERTY, illiteracy, superstition or to ease what elders see as their burden of having a girl child.

Data of the Karnataka Women and child development department shows that 1,091 child marriages actually took place.

According to sections 9 and 13 of the Act, if the girl is a minor, then the man will be charged with a penalty and severe imprisonment. Sections 10 and 11 provide for imprisonment of at least 1-2 years for those supporting and encouraging such marriages aside from a penalty of Rs 1 lakh.

Karnatakachief ministerBasavaraj Bommai said the is contemplating bringing a law in the assembly to prevent religious conversions.

Karnataka chief minister was responding to the allegation of conversion in Yadgir after reports of forced conversions from the region.

Earlier in April this year, Gujarat Vidhan Sabha had passed the ‘Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, 2021’ with a majority to bring more stringent punishment against forced religious conversions through marriage.

Gujarat had become the third state after Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh to make a law against forced religious conversions.

While the coverage varies, 11 districts have done better than the states Average when it comes to administering the second dose. The remaining 21 districts are lagging, data as on July 20 shows. While Udupi has jabbed 90% of those eligible for the second time, Chamarajanagar has the lowest coverage at 49%.

Minister for , Ports and inland water transportMankal S Vaidyasaid that the support of central government is essential to find a permanent solution to the problem of sea erosion that affects 320km seashore inKarnataka.

The minister, who visited various places on the coast in Udupi district on Sunday, said that fishermen in Goa, Karnataka andKeralahave been facing difficulties due to the issue of sea erosion. “When a solution is found in one stretch, the issue crops up in another stretch. A permanent solution needs to be chalked out to prevent damages caused by sea erosion. Hence, we have been sending teams to all affected areas to conduct studies. We need support from the central government to find a permanent solution for sea erosion. It will not be possible for the State Government alone to find a permanent solution for the menace, the minister said.

Facing a stiff challenge of completing the process of determining reservation for OBCs and completing delimitation of wards across the existing 30 ZPs and 176 TPs, theKarnatakagovernment may defer these polls to beyond the assembly which is likely in April-May next year. “The focus is on completing these processes for BBMP wards first.

With Supreme Court and Karnataka High Court deadlines over holding local body elections polls fast approaching, the State Government is under pressure to speed up the process of determining reservation for Other Backward Castes (OBCs) and completing delimitation of wards across the existing 30 zilla panchayats (ZP) and 176 taluk panchayats (TP).

Constituencies will need to be reserved for these communities based on their Population strength. And all this, within the HC time frame. Senior ministers say that even if the process is completed, it does not mean elections can be held immediately.

More than 31.3 lakh students inKarnatakadont have digital devices, 37.8 lakh lack Internet access and 8.7 lakh have no television or radio in their homes, said a government report on Thursday. The department of public instruction released the report, which details gadget and net availability, as thousands of government and state board schools in Karnataka reopened for the academic year 2021-22 in virtual mode.

Over 1 crore children are enrolled in classes 1 to 10 in the state. It seems from the findings that a large number of students of government schools may be deprived of mainstream Education. Like 2020, it is unlikely that they will be called for regular oncampus classes anytime soon. Learning will take place through online modes such as WhatsApp andYou-Tube, and DDChandanachannels.

The report has once again brought the issue of the digital divide into focus. Educationists have been saying that lakhs of students miss out on learning because of officials and schools emphasis on technology. They have suggested that the government must find ways to restart offline classes safely.

Bengaluru Urban (South) has the highest number of students (11.1 lakh) among all education districts. According to the report, more than 8 lakh students here have smartphones or tablets, while 1.4 lakh have neither of these. Nearly 7 lakh students have internet access, but 2 lakh students dont. Over 9 lakh students have a TV and 2 lakh have a radio, while 37,213 have neither.

The replicas of rare monuments related toSamratAshok, which were found in Kalaburagi, Raichur and Koppal districts in the KalyanaKarnatakaregion, are displayed at the newly constructed Parliament building in New Delhi. Prime MinisterNarendra Modihad on Sunday inaugurated the new monument.

The huge display dedicated to the king includes the only depiction of Samrat Ashok along with his wife and two children found at Sannati in Kalaburagi district. Only edicts, emblems and pillars of Ashok have been found elsewhere in the country.

The second replica is a stone script by Samrat Ashok written in Brahmi that was found at Maski town in Raichur district. The third one is an ancient map of India with a mention of Koppal and Maski.
It is said that the display aims to introduce the upcoming generation to the great legacy of Ashok.

The state high level clearance committee (SHLCC), headed by chief minister BS Yediyurappa, on Wednesday cleared projects worth Rs 13,175 crore amid the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Prominent among the cleared projects include a major in the production of liquid Oxygen by Jindal Steel Works (JSW).

At a time when JSW is the single largest source of medical oxygen in the state, close to 440 MT at full capacity, an added facility is likely to benefit Karnataka in the long run and add to the capacity of the steel manufacturing major.

The project, sub-leased fromJSW Steel Ltd, will be executed by a subsidiary of its under the name of JSW Techno Projects Management limited at a cost of Rs 892 crore inTorangallu,Ballari.

Another major project which recieved clearance from the SHLCC was that of a single unit complex ofIndian Oil Corporationlimited (Iocl) in Chitradurga for storage and dispatch of petroleum on a 130 acre land parcel.

Them apart, the government also cleared a mega real estate construction of an integrated Township at Yelahanka on a 211 acres land parcel, which will be constructed by Rasasri tech park limited.

TheKarnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights(KCPCR) chairmanNaganna Gowdaon Tuesday announced village level committees composed of social activists, representatives of NGOs, locals, etc to create a safe Environment for kids in the village level, which will be monitored bygram panchayatand district-level officials.

Meanwhile, a new observation Home for children in conflict with law is planned in Sathagalli area of the city. This home is coming up with all modern facilities.