Surathkal: Two members of one family drowned at the NITK beach in Surathkal on Sunday morning when they had come to the beach to complete rituals for the funeral of another member of the family.

The deceased have been identified as Vaishnavi (21) and Trisha (17), residents of Shaktinagar in Mangaluru. Vaishnavi and Trisha were reportedly first cousins. Vaishnavi was pursuing engineering in a private college in the city while Trisha was studying at Gurukul High School in Bengaluru.

According to the reports, Vaishnavi’s father Venkatesh along with his daughter and Trisha went into the sea when a high tide washed them away. Surathkal Police’s Home Guard who was present at the scene, along with other locals tried to rescue them and brought them ashore.

They were rushed to a local hospital for treatment in a police vehicle but both Vaishnavi and Trisha breathed their last before reaching the hospital. Venkatesh however, was rescued and is said to have recovered.

A case in this regard has been registered at Surathkal Police Station.

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Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.

AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.

“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.

He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.

“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.

According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.

In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.

AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.