570 people held in Karnataka for illegal hoarding, sale of 'Anna Bhagya' rice: Minister
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Minister K H Muniyappa on Monday informed the Legislative Council that 570 people across the state have been arrested for the illegal hoarding and sale of rice intended for the 'Anna Bhagya' scheme.
The Minister, who holds the Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology portfolio, was replying to a starred question by MLC C T Ravi at the ongoing session in Suvarna Soudha here.
Ravi alleged that the Anna Bhagya rice is being smuggled to Singapore and Dubai, where it is being sold at a higher price.
According to the BJP MLC, the 10 kg rice, which is distributed in Karnataka free of cost to individuals belonging to the Below Poverty Line, is sold for prices ranging between Rs 1,500 to Rs 8,000.
The rice for the BPL families is polished in the rice mills and sold in foreign countries.
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Responding to the charge, the Minister said 29,603.15 quintals of illegally traded rice has been seized and 314 vehicles used in the operations have been confiscated.
In Yadgir district, officers from other departments who had been serving in the Food Department have been relieved of their duty, while the KFCSC warehouse in Gangavati taluk of Koppal district has been suspended.
He said officers and field staff have been instructed to conduct regular supervision to curb illegal storage and sale of ration rice, adding that criminal cases are being registered under the “Essential Commodities Act, 1955.”
The Minister warned that if ration cardholders are found misusing ration rice, their ration cards will be cancelled and action will follow as per rules.
He said, “Vigilance committees have been formed at the fair-price shop, taluk, district and State levels to oversee ration distribution.”
Muniyappa added that monthly ‘Food Adalats’ are being held at the fair-price shop level to create awareness among beneficiaries, and that a State-level ‘Food Vigilance Squad’ has been constituted to act against violations as per norms.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
