Tight security in place for PM's visit to Karnataka
Bengaluru: Elaborate security arrangements have been made in view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day visit to Karnataka on January 2 and 3, officials said.
The Special Protection Group officials had a meeting with state government officials, especially the police regarding the security arrangements.
During his stay in Tumakuru, drones will not be allowed and anybody violating the direction will face stringent action, said a notification issued by Deputy Commissioner of the district Dr Rakesh Kumar.
According to the tour itinerary, the Prime Minister will reach Bengaluru on January 2 and fly to Tumakuru by a helicopter to visit Sri Siddaganga Math.
Modi will later take part in the Krishi Karman Awards function at the Junior College grounds where he will address a gathering and distribute fishing equipment, a government press release said.
The same evening he will return to Bengaluru to visit the Defence Research and Development Organisation. He will stay at the Raj Bhavan.
The next day, the Prime Minister will inaugurate the 107th Indian Science Congress at the Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra Campus at the University of Agricultural Sciences in Bengaluru, before flying to New Delhi in the afternoon.
To oversee the arrangements, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa visited Tumakuru on Tuesday and held a meeting with officials.
Speaking to reporters later, Yediyurappa said Modi will reach Siddaganga Math at 2.15 p.m where he will pay his obeisance to the seer there.
He will be in the town till 5.30 p.m on January 2, he added.
"Later, he will take part in the Krishi Karman and Krishi Samman Awards function which about 1.5 lakh people are likely to attend. He is going to give awards to 28 progressive farmers from 21 states," said the Chief Minister.
The chief ministers of Manipur and Jharkhand and the Governor of Uttarakhand will also attend the event.
"It will be grand event. Since 1.5 lakh people will take part, we have made arrangements for loudspeakers and LED screens everywhere to avoid any inconvenience to the people," Yediyurappa said.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
