Karnataka Cabinet denounces Central govt for replacing MGNREGA with VB-G RAM G
Bengaluru (PTI) The Karnataka cabinet has denounced the BJP-led Union government for the passage of the VB-G RAM G Act that replaced the UPA-era rural employment law MGNREGA, with state minister H K Patil terming it a betrayal of the federal spirit.
The VB-G RAM G Bill was passed in Parliament during the recently concluded winter session amid vociferous protests by the opposition. The new act has a provision for 125 days of wage employment for rural workers.
Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil on Friday said, "We discussed the MGNREGA scheme. The cabinet expressed shock and condemned the Central government's act of repealing the MGNREGA."
"This act of the Centre is nothing but taking away the right to work, taking away the privilege of giving a hundred days of work. It propagates a centralised form of working."
Briefing reporters about the cabinet decisions, he said, "It is unfortunate that the Central government is playing politics with this scheme, weakening the state government, and betraying the federal spirit."
Patil said the cabinet also discussed the violence at Ballari. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has appropriately suspended the superintendent of police, he said.
Tension prevailed in parts of Ballari on Thursday night as supporters of Ballari City Congress MLA Nara Bharath Reddy and Gangavati BJP MLA G Janardhan Reddy clashed allegedly over a banner. One person was killed during the clash.
The Karnataka Cabinet has approved the Vishwaguru Basavanna Biodiversity Park, which is planned to be developed on 153 acres in Bengaluru North's Madappanahalli.
Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre said the cost for the project is expected to be Rs 250 crore, and the Cabinet has sanctioned Rs 50 crore in the first phase.
Plans are afoot to build a medicinal plantation, bird sanctuary, arboretum and interpretation centre, he said, adding that CSR funds from various companies will also be used for this project.
According to officials, this would be the third-largest park in the state capital. Lalbagh was built on an area of 240 acres in 1760, while Cubbon Park, spread over an area of 197 acres, was built in 1870.
The cabinet also gave its consent to issue guidelines under the Community and Corporate Social Responsibility Policy for the utilisation of CCSR funds in government schools, Patil said.
Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil said the Cabinet has decided to develop a 1,000-bed super speciality hospital for all kinds of organ transplants and cancers at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore, in partnership with the Azim Premji Foundation.
"We have given a proposal to the Azim Premji Foundation, and they have accepted it. We are giving them 10 acres of land on a 99-year lease... the entire cost of Rs 1,000 crore will be borne by the foundation, which will also spend Rs 350 crore per year for hospital maintenance," he said.
"It will be a philanthropic hospital and will be established in five years. Free-of-cost transplant would be provided for 70 per cent of the beds. The remaining 30 per cent beds would be charged a minimum amount as in government hospitals," he added.
The cabinet also granted administrative approval for the revised estimated cost of the Bangalore Suburban Transport Project (BSTP) Corridors two and four at Rs 16,876 crore.
Also, approval was accorded to undertake works worth around Rs 36.90 crore to upgrade the structural design of six selected district education and training institutes in the state and convert them into District Education and Training Institutes for Excellence.
The districts selected for the purpose are Bidar, Ballari, Chitradurga, Mysuru, Shivamogga and Mandya.
The cabinet has also approved the Karnataka Lokayukta (Amendment) Bill, 2025, pertaining to salaries and pensions of the Lokayukta. It also approved the Karnataka Jnana Bhandara Manuscripts and Digitisation Bill 2026.
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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.
