Dasara celebrations: Abhimanyu continues as howdah elephant
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The Hindu
a day ago
- The Hindu
Minister vows serious action on fertilizer shortage, dilapidated school buildings, and poor quality of food in Bidar
Forest, Environment and Ecology Minister and Bidar district in charge Minister Eshwar B. Khandre has assured that the issues of fertilizer shortage, dilapidated school buildings, and substandard food supplied to schoolchildren in Bidar would be taken up seriously and addressed on priority. Chairing the Karnataka Development Programmes (KDP) quarterly review meeting at the Zilla Panchayat hall in Bidar on Friday, the Minister directed Deputy Commissioner Shilpa Sharma, Zilla Panchayat CEO Girish Badole, Assistant Commissioners, and Executive Engineers to conduct inspections and certify the quality of all ongoing works. 'Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has inaugurated and laid the foundation for development projects worth ₹2,025 crore in the district. There should be close monitoring of the progress and quality of each of these projects,' the Minister said. Raising concern over poor SSLC and PU results in Bidar, Mr. Khandre ordered the formation of clusters to support students through focused coaching by expert teachers in English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies. He asked officials to identify top-performing teachers across taluks and initiate revision classes for SSLC and PU students for two months. Responding to complaints about the condition of school infrastructure, Mr. Khandre sought a detailed report from the Education Department on all dilapidated school and college buildings. 'Submit a file within a fixed deadline indicating whether the buildings can be repaired or must be rebuilt. Include the year of construction, estimated cost, and reasons for the early deterioration of these buildings,' he directed. On law and order Expressing shock over a recent case of sexual assault against a minor girl, the minister instructed DSPs to expedite investigations in all cases involving crimes against women and children. He also questioned whether CCTV cameras had been installed at crime-prone public locations and directed officials to take urgent steps to install them wherever lacking. 'Only when perpetrators are arrested, tried, and punished will such crimes be prevented,' he said. Focus on skilling and employment Acknowledging unemployment as a pressing concern, Mr. Khandre suggested that youth be given loans and encouraged to take up self-employment through government schemes. He added that since Bidar lacks natural resources for a full-scale industrial revolution, skill training should be aligned with job opportunities in the service sector. He also asked the Deputy Commsisioner and Zilla Panchayat CEO to personally inspect at least five development works each for quality assurance. During the meeting, MLA Shailendra Beldale raised concerns over reports of adulterated cooking oil and poor-quality food being served to students. He urged officials to inspect hostels and restaurants to ensure food safety standards. The meeting was attended by Minister for Municipal Administration and Haj Rahim Khan; Siddalingappa Patil, Sharanu Salagar, MLAs; M.G. Muley, Bhimaraya Patil, Chandrashekhar Patil; MLCs; Fisheries Development Corporation chairperson Mala B. Narayan Rao; BUDA chairman Basavaraj Jabashetty; DCC Bank president Amar Khandre; District Guarantee Implementation Committee chairman Amruthrao Chimkode; and senior officials from various departments.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Activist flags rampant encroachment, seeks freeze on Karnataka's forest plans
Bengaluru: The issue of forest encroachment across Karnataka is snowballing into a major controversy, now drawing the Centre's attention and threatening to derail the state forest department's working plans. Even as the Union govt continues to release crores of rupees under centrally sponsored schemes to support conservation efforts and clears forest diversion proposals, forest land in Karnataka is vanishing at an alarming pace. In a formal complaint addressed to the ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEF&CC) recently, Dharwad-based conservationist Raghavendra urged the Centre not to approve the draft working plans submitted by various forest divisions of Karnataka until all illegal encroachments are cleared and officials responsible are held accountable. Citing several Supreme Court orders and MoEF&CC guidelines, Raghavendra reminded the Centre of a key ministry directive issued on May 3, 2002, which made the approval of forest working plans and diversion proposals contingent on the eviction of encroachments. That directive was based on an apex court ruling on Nov 23, 2001, which sought strict enforcement of forest protection measures across all states. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru In his complaint, a copy of which is with TOI, Raghavendra pointed out that 1,385 new cases of forest encroachment were reported across Karnataka in 2023-24 alone. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Top 15 Prettiest Icons In The History The Noodle Box Undo These figures, mentioned in the forest department's annual report, highlight that the issue remains rampant in forest circles such as Bengaluru, Belagavi, Hassan and Shivamogga. The trend, he noted, has continued unabated for the past 7-8 years. In 2022-23, as many as 992 fresh encroachment cases were recorded from similar regions. Blaming the forest department's inaction, Raghavendra stated, "Despite orders from Supreme Court and directions from both the Union and state govts, forest encroachments aren't being cleared in a time-bound manner — barring a few recent cases... Chief conservators of forests (CCFs) and conservators of forests (CFs) have failed to convene quarterly meetings to monitor encroachments or assist field staff in eviction efforts. " Coincidentally, in June 2025, the principal chief conservator of forests (head of forest force) had issued a circular to all forest circles, instructing deputy conservators of forests, CFs, and CCFs to clear at least 10,000 acres of encroached forest land in the 2025-26 fiscal. Forest minister Eshwar Khandre told TOI he has been maintaining zero tolerance towards forest encroachments. "There are no fresh cases; we've been cracking down on any incident of encroachment involving more than three acres and reclaiming those lands. Only in a few cases have there been delays due to legal hurdles, which we are working to resolve at the earliest," he explained.
New Indian Express
3 days ago
- New Indian Express
Andhra Dy CM Pawan orders 24/7 monitoring of elephant movement in Chittoor, Tirupati
VIJAYAWADA: Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan, who also holds the portfolios of Forest and Environment, has directed Forest Department officials to enforce round-the-clock surveillance in Chittoor and Tirupati districts, where elephant herds have been damaging crops and posing risks to villagers. During a video conference on Tuesday, the Deputy Chief Minister reviewed recent incidents of crop destruction and the death of a farmer following an elephant attack. Pawan Kalyan stressed the need for real-time alerts to be issued through village-level WhatsApp groups, enabling timely warnings about elephant movement. He instructed that these alerts be monitored by Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) offices and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF). He also called for immediate implementation of measures to divert elephant herds away from farmland and back into forest areas using non-invasive techniques. Officials also reported a new incident in Chandragiri constituency, where a herd of 11 elephants, including four calves, damaged fields near Satya Sai ST Colony close to Kalyani Dam.
