Regional

Mysuru, Oct 3 (IANS) Congress President Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi are likely to join the Rahul Gandhi led - Bharat Jodo yatra, which entered day four in the southern district of Karnataka on Monday.

According to sources, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are scheduled to reach Mysuru city at noon and proceed to Mandakalli airport in Mysuru by a special flight.

Both the leaders would visit the Chamundeshwari hills and seek the Goddess's blessings. Later, they would leave by helicopter for hill station Kodagu where they will rest for a couple of days.

Rahul Gandhi will also join them in Kodagu and spend some time with them there. Against the backdrop of the Vijaya Dashami (Navratri) festivities in Karnataka, the Bharat Jodo Yatra will be halted for two days --Tuesday and Wednesday.

Party leaders say that Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi would take part in padayatra when it resumes on October 6. Priyank Kharge, Congress MLA and chairman of KPCC Media Cell stated that Priyanka Gandhi would take part in the padayatra on Thursday in Melukote town in Mandya district.

He further stated that if health permits, Sonia Gandhi would also join the padayatra on that day.

Senior party leader A.S. Ponnanna has been given responsibility of monitoring the visit for top Congress leaders. Gandhis would stay at the Coorg Wilderness Resort in Megeri village of Madikeri taluk. The CRPF personnel are providing security for the resort.

After covering Chamarajanagar and Mysuru districts, the yatra entered Mandya district this morning.

Rahul Gandhi visited Ajam Mosque with local Congress MLA Tanveer Sait and also paid a visit to the historical Saint Philomena's Church.

On Monday, Rajya Sabha member Jairam Ramesh tweeted, "After the downpour of last night created iconic images, day 26 of Bharat Jodo Yatra started at 6.30 am from the heart of historic Mysuru."

Rahul Gandhi and padayatris will be walking 22 kilometers at a fast clip today (Monday) to reach the end point 3 hours before the usual schedule of 4.30 p.m."

--IANS
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Koppal (Karnataka), Oct 3 (IANS) Karnataka Police registered an FIR against three persons for forcing a 16-year-old boy to perform worship without clothes. The accused allegedly video graphed the act and shared on social media, making it viral.

The Koppal Rural Police have registered the case and are investigating the matter which had come to light lately. According to police, the three accused had convinced the boy that if he offers worship in naked position to the God, his father's debts would be cleared.

The accused told the boy that if his father's debts have to be cleared, he should be doing the act. They assured him that his family would get money immediately after the worship is performed in naked state.

Later they took the boy to a lodge in the Hubballi city, and made him offer worship to the God in naked state, police said.

The accused, who have been identified as Sharanappa, Virupana Gouda and Sharanappa Talawara, filmed the entire episode. Later, they uploaded the videos, which went viral on social media.

After coming to know about the videos being circulated, the boy had informed police about what had happened to him. Thereafter, the parents lodged a case against the accused persons. The police have taken up the investigation.

--IANS
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Rajkot, Oct 3 (IANS) A minor boy died while another was seriously injured when their bike collided with a police van here, police said on Monday.

According to a complaint filed by police van driver Rajesh Mathia, he, along with other police personnel, was on night patrolling on Sunday, when a bike coming from the wrong side, crashed into his vehicle on the BRTS road where only BRTS buses, emergency services and police vehicles are allowed.

Though he alerted the biker with a dipper light and horn, he did not respond and rammed his bike into the PCR van.

While Piyush Zaria died on the spot, pillion rider Krush Chandegdra suffered severe injuries and was rushed to the hospital.

An investigation is underway.

--IANS
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Chennai, Oct 3 (IANS) Protests against the proposed airport at Parandur have intensified in Tamil Nadu's Kancheepuram district with the grama sabha meeting passing a resolution against it.

The resolution was passed by Ekanpuram villagers in Parandur sitting under the statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar on Gandhi Jayanti. Most of those who signed the resolution were women.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin had in the state Assembly announced the construction of an airport at Parandur at a cost of Rs 20,000 crore. The new airport is proposed to have two runways, taxiways, aprons, cargo terminals, and new buildings among other infrastructure, and has been stiffly opposed by the villagers, including farmers.

The state government has promised compensation to those displaced due to the airport project above that of the market value. However, people in the district have been protesting against the project and have warned the government of strong agitation against the project.

M. Kumarasamy, an agriculturist at Ekanapuram village while speaking to IANS, said, "We will not allow our land to be taken away by the government for the airport project. The DMK government had promised to take care of the needs of the poor and downtrodden, including farmers. Is this the way they are looking after our needs, taking away our land which is our only livelihood? There will be strong protests and we can't be lured by the compensation they are offering."

Villagers have also decided to conduct relay satyagraha against the impending airport project in the days to come.

The government has announced the second airport in Chennai at Parandur to be functional by 2028 and that an area of around 4,500 acres would be taken over for its construction. The state government is of the opinion that Chennai and its surrounding areas will have stagnant growth without a second airport.

--IANS
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Puducherry, Oct 3 (IANS) The Puducherry government has requested the Centre to provide the services of power grid officials to tackle the crisis in the power sector of the union territory.

Notably, the employees of the electricity department of the Union Territory are on an indefinite strike since September 28.

They are protesting against the government's move of inviting tender to privatise power distribution. The Union Territory is facing a crisis with several parts plunging into darkness after some electricity staff allegedly took away fuse wires in some places.

Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan has warned agitating employees of evoking stringent action of the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) against them. On Saturday night, some parts of the state witnessed power cuts for five to seven hours and in some places, it continued till Sunday. People blocked the roads in Villiyanur and Ariyapalayam.

State Home minister A. Namassivayam, who also holds the electricity portfolio, called an urgent meeting of the police officials and requested an additional company of CRPF.

In rural areas of Sedrapet and Madagadipet, protestors blocked the road for hours on Sunday leading to the local legislators taking up the matter with the home minister.

Namassivayam held an emergency meeting with top police brass and the state Chief Secretary Rajeev Verma on Sunday late night. The DG of Police, UT of Puducherry, Manoj Kumar Lal was also present.

"We will not allow anyone to take law in their hands and taking away fuse carriers in sub-stations leaving general public including patients at the hospital at their mercy can never be allowed. We have requested the central government to deploy the services of Power Grid of India officials to control the situation as well as two companies of paramilitary force to stand guard to the power stations in the territory," he told IANS.

--IANS
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Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 3 (IANS) For the past two days, there is only one destination in Kerala and that is Kannur to say a final goodbye to one of the CPI-M's hugely popular leader, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who passed away in Chennai while undergoing treatment for cancer.

The who's who in Kerala cutting across all sections of the society, including the political leaders, business icons, film stars, socio-cultural personalities, sports personalities, police officials, bureaucrats and even retired people and not to mention the common man are trooping in the city.

On Sunday afternoon the body arrived in Kannur on a special air ambulance and since then thousands of people have paid their last respects at the Town Hall in Thalassery, his hometown and then the body was taken to his house, nearby.

The sight of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan along with his family and his cabinet colleagues sitting in the hall for close to seven hours, and his statement that Kodiyeri was not like a brother, but a brother revealed all.

The arrival of another hugely popular strongman from Kannur -- State Congress president K. Sudhakaran also paid his last respects and spent time with his arch political rivals, including Vijayan and other top CPI-M leaders from Kannur.

Legislator K.K. Rema, the wife of slain former CPI-M firebrand leader, whom Vijayan referred to as a 'renegade' also came to pay her last respects.

On Monday morning Vijayan and his family came to Kodiyeri's house and consoled his wife, Vinodhini.

At 10 a.m. the body was being taken to the Kannur district CPI-M office where it will be kept till 3 p.m. and then it will be taken to the final destination at the Payyambalam beach where he will be laid to rest along other departed legends of the party like E.K. Nayanar, Chadayan Govindan and others.

Kodiyeri, 68, was a five-time legislator and was the state home minister from 2006 to 2011, during which he became a politburo member of the party. From 2015 he was the state secretary of the CPI-M, a post he held till the last week of August, when he quit and was taken to Chennai for expert treatment, but he breathed his last on Saturday night.

--IANS
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Lucknow, Oct 3 (IANS) The Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden is hosting adventure sports -- zip lining, slithering and archery -- as part of the ongoing National Wildlife Week being observed from October 1 to 7.

The zoo is also hosting the adventure sports in the hippo park area on an experimental basis.

B.K. Singh, zoo director, said, "We will keep it running till October 7 and continue if it is a success. These sports will be open to the public for a fee."

Principal conservator of forests and head of forest force, Mamata Sanjeev Dubey said the children must be aware of the issues pertaining to our wildlife. She also said that focus has always been on cats and tigers and it was now time to draw attention to primates and birds as well. Dubey suggested that a pocket book should be compiled based on the different kinds of birds and butterflies.

For the uninitiated, zip lining is an action-filled recreational activity that involves riding a steel cable on a protective seat or a belt between two points and generally on a valley that exhibits spectacular sceneries.

Slithering is controlled descend from higher to a lower point on a free hanging rope. Participants are carefully harnessed and attached to a safety belay line to break their fall if they lose control and are then left to enjoy the descend.

--IANS
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Lucknow, Oct 3 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to develop solar rooftop projects on government and semi-government buildings and offices in the state as part of its new renewable energy initiative.

The department of New and Renewable Energy Development Agency (NEDA), the nodal body, has already invited online bids from prospective bidders for designing, manufacturing, supply, erecting, testing, and commissioning of 25-2,000 kw grid-connected solar PV projects on government buildings and offices.

The selected contractors will also be responsible for maintaining and operating the rooftop solar projects for 25 years.

According to the government spokesman, "NEDA has also invited a pre-bid conference on October 10 to take note of suggestions that the prospective bidders may have to make."

The rooftop systems will be implemented as per the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Authority (UPERC) RSPV Regulations, 2019, and its amendments.

A rooftop solar PV essentially refers to the grid-interactive solar photovoltaic power system installed on the rooftops of consumer premises that uses sunlight for direct conversion into electricity through photo-voltaic technology.

The project is proposed to be executed under the Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) model on a net-billing/net-metering basis.

Under the RESCO model, bidders intend to take a rooftop owned by some other entity on mutually agreed terms and conditions, including a lease agreement, from the rooftop owner(s) and enter into the PPA with the rooftop owner for the supply of solar power for 25 years. As per such agreements, the rooftop owners do not have to make any upfront payment.

"The scheme aims to reduce fossil fuel-based electricity and thereby, the carbon footprint. This scheme, with an aggregate capacity of 50 MW throughout the state, envisages installation of grid-connected rooftop solar PV projects," the spokesman said.

--IANS
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Hyderabad, Oct 2 (IANS) The decks have reportedly been cleared on Sunday for the transformation of the ruling TRS party in Telangana, to a national party.

Sources in the party said that the chief minister and TRS supremo K. Chandrasekhar Rao will announce his much anticipated national party at 1.19 p.m. on Wednesday, October 5, coinciding with the auspicious Vijaya Dasami festival.

The chief minister has opted to rename the TRS to enable smooth transition into a national party.

Sources said the decision was finalised during the high-level party meet convened by KCR on Sunday afternoon.

Apart from his cabinet colleagues, the meeting was attended by the heads of the party's district units in Telangana.

On October 5, at 11 a.m., the party will discuss the matter at a meet attended by MLAs, MPs, and office bearers at all levels.

The party is expected to pass a resolution renaming the party as Bharatiya Rashtra Samiti (BRS) signifying it is a transformation to a national political party.

The party leadership feels this procedure will help avoid any technical issues with the Election Commission, in terms of retaining its identities such as party symbol or flag.

Subsequently, KCR, as the Telangana chief minister is popularly known, will officially announce the birth of the national party at 1.19 p.m., sources said.

KCR has been actively mulling a national alternative to the ruling BJP at the Centre, soon after he won his second consecutive victory in the Assembly polls held in 2018.

Relations between the BJP and the TRS soured following the former emerging as the main rival in the state.

After initially toying with the idea of a national front, he finally settled for setting up a national party on his own.

--IANS
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Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 2 (IANS) The funeral of CPI-M Politburo member and former Home Minister of Kerala, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan will be held at Payyambalam beach in Kannur on Monday. The senior leader passed away at Appolo hospital in Chennai on Saturday after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 68.

Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was a Member of Legislative Assembly from the Thalassery assembly constituency for five terms and he was Home and Tourism Minister of Kerala. The senior leader was the CPI-M state secretary for three terms and demitted office recently after he became critically ill. He is remembered for his down-to-earth attitude and grass root contact as well as his speeches that were laced with humour.

Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan who also hails from Kannur district- the red fort of CPI-M, will attend the funeral after cancelling his European trip which he was to undertake from today.

Kodiyeri Balakrishnan's mortal remains will reach Kannur airport at 11 a.m. from Chennai, along with his wife Vinodini, son Advocate Bineesh and daughter-in-law, Rinitta.

The CPI-M has made elaborate arrangements for the public to pay homage in his home district. His body will be kept for public homage at Thalassery town hall in his hometown.

CPI-M Kannur district secretary, M.V. Jayarajan while speaking to IANS said: "The passing away of Kodiyeri Balakrishnan is a major loss to the party. The party cadres are in mourning. His body will be kept for public to pay their last tributes at several points in Kannur district including in Thalassery town hall."

--IANS
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