CM announces extension of Raitha Vidya Nidhi scheme for 8th & 9th standard rural girl students
Vijayapura, Dec 25: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday announced extending 'Raitha Vidya Nidhi' scheme for eighth and ninth standard girl students in view of the drop in their enrolment in rural areas.
A Government Order in this regard would be issued immediately, an official press release said quoted him as saying after launching development works worth over Rs 244 crore in Vijayapura district.
Speaking about the poverty in northern Karnataka, Bommai said the living standards of people there had not improved despite "thousands of crores of rupees" being spent in the past.
"Elaborate discussions have been held for the development of northern Karnataka. Many reports have been presented, agitations have been held, thousands of crores has been spent... but when I see the living condition of the people here, their homes, education facilities, employment opportunities for the youth, I feel sad. It really hurts me. This has to change," Bommai said.
Emphasising on time bound completion of long pending projects like Upper Krishna Project-3, the Chief Minister said the State government has already released Rs 2,500 crore for completing relief and rehabilitation of people who would be affected by UKP--3.
He also said that the state cabinet has fulfilled long pending demand of grape farmers of the region by converting the Wine Board into Karnataka Grape and Wine Board, which would enable the farmers to be board members.
Referring to the demand for expansion of the under construction Vijayapura airport, Bommai said the work on the airport is in progress.
The demand for extension of its runway to enable landing of bigger aircraft, cargo handling facilities and other works would be fulfilled by providing an additional Rs 120 crore, he added.
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Melinda French Gates resigns as Gates Foundation co-chair, 3 years after her divorce from Bill Gates
New York, May 13: Melinda French Gates will step down as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the nonprofit she and her ex-husband Bill Gates founded and built into one of the world's largest philanthropic organisations over the past 20 years.
“This is not a decision I came to lightly,” French Gates posted on the X platform on Monday. “I am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequities around the world.”
She praised the foundation's CEO, Mark Suzman, and the foundation's board of trustees, which was significantly expanded after the couple announced their divorce in May 2021.
“The time is right for me to move forward into the next chapter of my philanthropy,” French Gates wrote in her statement. She organises some of her investments and philanthropic gifts through her organisation, Pivotal Ventures, which is not a nonprofit.
Bill Gates thanked French Gates for her “critical” contributions to the foundations in a statement, saying, “I am sorry to see her leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work.”
French Gates will receive $12.5 billion as part of her agreement with Gates, which she said would commit to future work focused on women and families.
The Gates Foundation did not immediately return a request for comment about whether those assets would come from the foundation itself. In an emailed statement, the foundation said that Suzman announced the decision to employees on Monday.
“After a difficult few years watching women's rights rolled back in the US and around the world, she wants to use this next chapter to focus specifically on altering that trajectory,” Suzman said of French Gates.
Suzman said he knew many had joined the foundation in part because of their admiration for her advocacy, especially around gender equity.
“I know how beloved Melinda is here,” Suzman wrote.
The Gates Foundation holds $75.2 billion in its endowment as of December 2023, and announced in January, it planned to spend $8.6 billion through the course of its work in 2024.
The Associated Press receives financial support for news coverage in Africa from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and for news coverage of women in the workforce from Pivotal Ventures.
