Mangaluru: ACB traps project engineer while taking bribe
Mangaluru, October 03: ACB sleuths on Wednesday trapped a project engineer of Integrated Rural Energy Scheme of the Zilla Panchayat while taking bribe from an agency owner to give subsidy for bio-gas here and recovered Rs 30,000 from the engineer.
The arrested engineer is identified as N. Nagesh. Nagesh has demanded Rs 50,000 to release the subsidy amount. The agency owner had given Rs 15,000 earlier and the engineer was threatening him of not releasing the amount if the remaining Rs 35,000 is not given to him, it is said.
Desperate over his attitude, the agency owner has lodged a complaint with the ACB Mangaluru. On Wednesday, the ACB officials raided Nagesh while taking Rs 30,000 bribe and arrested him and recovered the amount.
ACB SP Shruthi N.S, DySP Sudheer M. Hegde, Inspector Yogish Kumar and staff Hariprasad, Umesh, Radhakrishna K, Prashanth, Vaishaly, Rakesh Vagman, Ganesh, Radhakrishna and Rajesh participated in the raid.
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Bharat Bandh today: Nationwide strike disrupts services as over 25 cr workers protest govt policies
New Delhi: A nationwide strike or Bharat Bandh called by ten central trade unions is underway today, with over 25 crore workers from both organised and unorganised sectors participating. The strike, which is also supported by several rural and agricultural labour organisations, is a protest against the central government’s economic and labour policies, which unions claim favour corporates at the cost of workers, farmers, and the poor.
Key demands of protesters:
► Withdrawal of the new labour codes,
► Increase in minimum wages,
► Creation of more government jobs,
► Hike in MGNREGA wages and workdays,
► A similar urban employment guarantee scheme,
► End to hiring retired officials over younger professionals in government departments.
A 17-point charter of demands has been submitted to the Union Labour Ministry, but union leaders allege no meaningful engagement has been initiated by the government so far.
Disruptions reported:
While banks, stock markets, and government offices are functioning as usual, disruptions are being reported in public transport across several states:
West Bengal: Protesters blocked railway tracks at Jadavpur railway station despite police deployment. Bus services continued amid high security, with some drivers seen wearing helmets as a safety measure.
Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Bihar and parts of Delhi and Maharashtra reported sporadic disruptions in bus and train services.
Schools and colleges remain open in most places, though some institutions announced last-minute closures depending on local conditions.
Unions leading the strike:
The strike is being spearheaded by major trade unions including: INTUC, AITUC, CITU, HMS, SEWA, AIUTUC, AICCTU, LPF, UTUC, and TUCC.
The new labour laws, a major flashpoint, have drawn flak for allegedly weakening worker protections. Union leaders say the changes:
► Extend working hours,
► Restrict the right to strike,
► Undermine collective bargaining.
The unions have also criticised the trend of hiring retired officials instead of young jobseekers. With 65% of India's population under the age of 35, they argue that ignoring youth employment in sectors like Railways, steel, and education is both unjust and economically damaging.
This is not the first large-scale strike organised by the trade unions. Similar nationwide protests were held on:
November 26, 2020,
March 28–29, 2022,
February 16, 2024.
All of them focused on issues like the privatisation of PSUs, job insecurity, and the casualisation of the workforce.
