Panaji (PTI): The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Saturday said its three ships have been trying to douse the fire that broke out on a merchant vessel - an operation that has been continuing for the last 12 hours off the coast of Karwar in Karnataka.

The three ICS ships - Sujeet, Sachet and Samrat - have been engaged in the firefighting operation on the cargo vessel 6.5 nautical miles south of Karwar, it said.

The ship carrying hazardous material had caught major fire about 102 nautical miles southwest of Goa on Friday.

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On Saturday morning, the ICG said on its X handle, "Ships Sujeet, Sachet and Samrat have been fighting the fire for over 12 hours, preventing its spread. As of 0700 hrs, 20 Jul, the vessel is 6.5 NM south of Karwar."

ICG's Dornier aircraft is conducting aerial assessment, with an additional aircraft from Kochi positioned for the search and rescue operation, it said.

"ETV Water Lily departed #Mumbai on 19 Jul, arriving on scene by 21 Jul," it added.

The merchant vessel, on its way from Mundra to Colombo, was reportedly carrying "International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) cargo" and explosions have been occurring on its front part, the ICG had said on Friday.

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Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.

AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.

“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.

He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.

“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.

According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.

In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.

AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.