KARNATAKA

The issue of separate religious status for Lingayats was a political issue in the 2018assembly . Three ministers and many MLAs of the Congress and JD(S) Coalition Government had taken initiative for the agitation. However, those politicians have left the movement for their own reasons. The demand took a backseat in these five years.

About 1 lakh Lingayats from across state, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and other states are participating at their own cost and contributing funds voluntarily for the event.

TheKarnataka dismissed all the petitions filed by Muslim girls seeking permission to wearhijabin educational institutions.

While delivering the final verdict, the Karnataka HC said that wearing hijab by Muslim Women doesn’t form an essential religious practice under the Islamic faith.

He said the government had the power to prescribe uniform guidelines, dismissing various petitions challenging the order.

The controversy began in December when a government-run school in Karnataka’s Udupi district barred students wearing hijabs from entering classrooms, triggering protests by Muslims.

Months before the Karnataka assembly polls, the Centre has approved a modified detailed project report (DPR) of the Kalasa-Banduri Nala drinking water project, which was one of the key poll promises made by BJP during the 2018 assembly election, report Sandeep Moudgal & Gururaj Jamkhandi.

The project report was approved despite objections from Goa. “This is PM Narendra Modi’s gift to North Karnataka and this sweet news has come during the legislature session in Belagavi,”Bommaiinformed the assembly hours before the winter session wound up on Thursday. The project had been hanging fire for long, with agitations seeking early implementation going on for at least four decades.

Karnataka struck down provisions ofKarnatakaPolice (Amendment) Act, 2021, that had banned online games.

The division bench was headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi and Justice Krishna S. Dixit.

According to the bench, Karnataka Act number 28/2021 to the extent the provisions ultra vires the constitution, however not the entire Act.

This judgment was interpreted for preventing an appropriate legislation concerning the subject like betting and gambling in line with the provisions of constitution.

A writ of Mandamus was issued to restrain the respondents from interfering with online gaming business and allied activities of the petitioners.

TheChild Rights Masotsava Committeehas observed that 90% of the schools inDakshina Kannadado not have a child protection policy document. The Karnataka State Child Rights Policy-2016 has even prescribed a template for child protection policy for schools.

With the increasing numbers of crimes against children, especially sexual abuse and cyber crime, having a child protection policy document is the need of the hour, and the committee will insist that the administration make it mandatory.

The ordered notice to the State Government in a Public Interest Litigation seeking implementation of National e-Vidhan (NeVA) application in the state.

NeVA is a work-flow system developed by the Centre to enable smooth conduct of legislative proceedings and house business in a paperless manner. A division bench headed by Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale directed the government to submit its response by the next date of hearing.

The Central government sponsored scheme, NeVA, which envisages to cover all state assemblies has a total comprehensive outlay of Rs 674 crore as against Karnatakas scheme which covers only the states assembly and council with an outlay of Rs 254crore.

Amid the kickbacks controversy, the government has decided to use new-age technology to ensure transparency in the tendering process. This is to track every authenticated vendor/contractor before allocating new projects.

Over the years, incomplete or pending public projects have resulted in several private firms being blacklisted from applying for government tenders. Yet, the same companies shift their base to other states to apply afresh for new projects and continue to misuse public funds without adequate expertise or track record, sources say.

Using crypto technology, theCentre for Smart Governancehas developed a vendor blockchain that will keep a chronological record of every vendor/contractor who has registered on theKarnatakae-procurement portal or in any other state, and intends to bid for a project.

The government plans to complete the repository of vendors registered on the e-procurement portal after securing their Consent. Once the vendor agrees to be part of the blockchain, all his records will be available to tender-inviting parties. It will also help the vendor prove his antecedents without having to run from pillar to post for a physical completion certificate and letter of recommendation from his previous employer, said the official.

The CSG will try to get on board other state governments and tender-inviting agencies across the country, so that more stakeholders will utilise the blockchain.

AmmanigonduPustaka, an initiative started by a librarian in a remote village panchayat, has now become a state-wide campaign. This is thanks toSavithriram Kanemaradka, the librarian at Mandekolou village panchayat. She started the Ammanigondu Pustaka concept to pique interest among the younger generation to read books.

As per the circular from the panchayat raj department, the children must read the book along with their parents, after borrowing it from the local panchayat library.