Karnataka govt to bifurcate Ballari to create new district
Bengaluru, Sep 19: Karnataka government has proposed to create new Vijayanagara district by carving out six taluks from the existing Ballari district.
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa has asked the Chief Secretary to place the proposal before the next cabinet meeting, official sources said on Thursday.
He stressed the need to form a new Vijayanagar district with its headquarters in Hosapet by carving out six taluks – Hosapet, Kampli, Hagaribommanahalli, Kottur, Hadagali, and Harapanahalli – from Ballari district and keeping the remain five taluks – Ballari, Kurugodu, Siraguppa, Sandur, and Kudligi – in Ballari district.
Once approved, Vijayanagara will become the 31st district in the state.
Anand Singh, one of the 17 disqualified MLAs whose rebellion led to the fall of the previous H D Kumaraswamy-led government, had cited the demand for a separate Vijayanagara district as one of the reasons for his resignation from Congress.
A delegation lead by Singh on Wednesday had met Yediyurappa and urged him to create a separate Vijayanagara district by bifurcating Ballari.
According to official sources, Yediyurappa said that keeping public and administrative interest in mind, it was necessary to create the new district with six out of 11 taluks in Ballari District with Hosapete as its headquarters.
Noting that some parts of the Ballari district were about 200 km away from the present headquarters, the Chief Minister said it was causing inconvenience to farmers, poor, labourers and common people.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
'Sarke Chunar' row: Sanjay Dutt apologises; to sponsor education of 50 tribal girls
New Delhi (PTI): Actor Sanjay Dutt on Monday appeared before the National Commission for Women (NCW) in connection with the controversy over the song 'Sarke Chunar Teri Sarke' and submitted a written apology, expressing regret for any "unintended" harm caused to society.
During the hearing, held under NCW chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar, the commission raised concerns over alleged vulgarity and indecent representation of women in the song from the movie "KD The Devil" and questioned issues of intent, awareness and accountability.
The chairperson emphasised whether adequate due diligence was undertaken before participating in content that could be perceived as promoting objectification of women, while also underlining the responsibility of senior and influential public figures in ensuring that their work remains within the bounds of legal and societal standards.
As a corrective measure, Dutt committed to sponsoring the education of 50 tribal girl children as part of efforts towards social welfare and women's empowerment, the NCW said in a statement.
He also assured the commission that his future artist agreements would include mandatory legal due diligence provisions to ensure dignified and appropriate representation of women and children in films and related creative projects.
Actor Nora Fatehi, who was also summoned, could not appear as she is currently abroad and has sought a fresh date for the hearing.
On April 6, other individuals associated with the song, including director Kiran Kumar alias Prem, lyricist Raqueeb Alam and representatives of KVN Production Company Gautam K M and Suprith, appeared before the commission and submitted their apologies.
The NCW underscored that while artistic freedom is important, it must be exercised with responsibility and sensitivity, reiterating the need for accountability in content reaching wide public audiences and reaffirming its commitment to safeguarding the dignity and representation of women.
The Hindi version of the song, released on March 15 on YouTube, drew public ire for its sexually explicit lyrics.
After the outrage, the makers deleted the Hindi version of the song from YouTube, although it was widely played and shared across various platforms.
Fatehi, in a video later, distanced herself from the song, saying she shot the video for the Kannada version and her permission was not taken to use it in the Hindi version. The lyricist, singer and the director also apologised.
The issue was brought up in Lok Sabha during Question Hour by Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Anand Bhadoria last month.
Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the song was already banned and the government was ready to take action against such vulgarity.
"KD The Devil" is a Kannada film, dubbed in four languages, including Hindi. It will release on April 30. The film features Dhruva Sarja, V Ravichandran, Ramesh Aravind, Shilpa Shetty, and Dutt.
