Kerala rains leave 20 dead, Nehru boat race postponed
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug 9: The toll in rain-related deaths in Kerala touched 20 on Thursday as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan postponed Saturday's annual Nehru boat race in Alappuzha in view of heavy showers forecast.
Speaking to the media here, Vijayan said rains have caused extensive damage to life and properties across the state. "We have sought six additional teams of National Disaster Response Force," he added.
"As we speak, the trial run of opening one shutter of the Idukki dam might have taken place," he said.
As a precaution, the Cochin International Airport Limited has informed that till 2.30 p.m. all incoming flights will be diverted to other destinations, while there will be no problem for outgoing flights.
Vijayan said the deaths includes 11 from Idukki, six from Malappuram, two in Kozhikode and one from Wayanad.
"Since more rains are forecast, as a matter of abundant caution, it has been decided to postpone the upcoming Nehru boat race on the Punnamada lake. The new dates will be announced by the organisers," said Vijayan.
He pointed out that the central team that has arrived to assess the damages caused in the earlier rains have agreed to provide all help.
"Since this episode has led to widespread loss and destruction, the requirement of money is there and we call upon all who are willing to donate. They can do it to the Chief Minister's Fund," Vijayan said.
Earlier State Power Minister M.M. Mani, who hails from Idukki, said: "Things are pretty bad and I have visited the affected areas on Thursday morning.
"The shutters of the Idamalyar dam was opened. We will open one shutter of the Idukki dam also..."
At 12.30 p.m., after a gap of 26 years, one shutter of the Idukki dam was opened as part of a trial run and to assess the flow of water. The shutters will be closed after four hours.
Earlier Vijayan held an emergency meeting here to assess the situation and appointed senior official P.H. Kurian to lead the rescue and relief operations.
A special monitoring cell has been opened in the state secretariat and all the 14 district collectors have been directed to open one each as well.
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Karnataka caste census report likely to be placed before cabinet on Jan 16
Bengaluru (PTI): With the Socio-Economic and Education Survey report, popularly known as the 'caste census,' likely to be placed before the state cabinet on January 16, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara stressed that its contents should be made public.
He said, any decision based on the report is the prerogative of the government and it will be taken after analysing it.
Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes under its then Chairman K Jayaprakash Hegde had submitted the report to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on February 29 last year, amid objections raised by certain sections of society and voices against it from within ruling Congress.
"It was decided the sealed cover (of report) will be opened before the cabinet, otherwise it may lead to leakage of information....whether there will be a discussion on it or not, I cannot speak about it now, once opened at least abstract information will be known to us," Parameshwara told reporters here replying to a question.
To a question on the opposition from certain dominant sections to the report and implementation of its recommendations, he said, the government has got the report after spending Rs 160 crore tax payers money, it should at least be made public, taking action based on it is secondary.
"Taking action based on it is left to the discretion of the government, the government will ultimately decide. But at least the information from the report that was prepared by spending Rs 160 crore, should come out. So there is a demand that what is there in the report be made public," he added.
What is happening now is bringing out the information from the report, the Home Minister said.
Karnataka's two dominant communities -- Vokkaliags and Lingayats -- have expressed reservations about the survey done, calling it "unscientific", and have demanded that it be rejected and a fresh survey be conducted.
The commission headed by Jayaprakash Hegde had said that the report was prepared based on data collected by 1.6 lakh officials, including 1.33 lakh teachers under the leadership of respective Deputy Commissioners of the districts across the state.
The then Siddaramaiah-led Congress government (2013-2018) had in 2015 commissioned the survey in the state.
The state Backward Classes Commission under its then chairperson Kantharaju was tasked with preparing a caste census report. The survey work was completed in 2018, towards the end of Siddaramaiah's first tenure as Chief Minister. The findings of the survey in the form of a report never came out in public thereafter.
With strong disapproval from the two politically influential communities the survey report may turn out to be a political hot potato for the government, as it may set the stage for a confrontation, with Dalits and OBCs among others demanding for it to be made public.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress president, and a Vokkaliga, was a signatory, along with a couple of other ministers, to a memorandum submitted by the community to the chief minister earlier, requesting that the report and the data be rejected.
All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, the apex body of Veerashaiva-Lingayats, which has also expressed its disapproval vis-a-vis the survey and demanded conduct of a fresh survey, is headed by veteran Congress leader and MLA Shamanuru Shivashankarappa. Several Lingayat ministers and MLAs too have raised objections.
According to some reports, findings of the survey are allegedly contrary to the "traditional perception" with regard to the numerical strength of various castes in Karnataka, especially Lingayats and Vokkaligas, making it a politically sticky issue.
