‘Bengaluru bandh’ if BBMP division decision is not withdrawn: Vatal Nagaraj
Bengaluru: Pro-Kannada activist Vatal Nagaraj on Saturday warned that a ‘Bengaluru Bandh’ would be called if the state government does not withdraw its decision to divide the city into five municipalities under the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) Act. He termed the move “fatal to the existence of Kannadigas” and claimed it would increase the influence of non-Kannada speakers in the city.
Speaking at a press conference held at the Press Club in Bengaluru, Nagaraj said that the decision to split the city would damage its prestige and dignity. “Reducing Bengaluru to the level of a taluk is unacceptable. Appointing five mayors and placing the Chief Minister at the helm of the GBA is against the spirit of decentralised local governance,” he stated. “This move paves the way for political domination by non-Kannada speakers,” he added.
He demanded that, instead of forming five separate municipal corporations, elections should first be held for the unified city corporation. He also criticised the collapse of the city’s civic infrastructure. “Garbage is piling up across the city, roads are riddled with potholes, and lakes are being polluted due to encroachments. Yet, the authorities remain indifferent. Basic civic services are being ignored while the government continues to impose garbage collection taxes,” he alleged.
Vatal Nagaraj announced that a public awareness campaign will be launched from August 14 to expose what he called the government's betrayal of Kannadigas. He also revealed plans to hold discussions with writers, film actors, and artists on the issue. “If our demands are not fulfilled, we will be forced to call for a Bengaluru Bandh,” he reiterated.
Leaders Parthasarathy, Girish Gowda, Narayanaswamy, and others were present at the press meet.
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Dense fog disrupts operations at Delhi airport; 228 flights cancelled, 5 diverted
New Delhi (PTI): Dense fog disrupted flight operations at Delhi Airport on Monday, with various airlines cancelling 228 flights and diverting five to nearby airports due to low visibility, an official said.
However, except for Air India, which had in an X post in the morning announced the cancellation of some 40 flights, no other airlines, including crisis-hit IndiGo, shared the numbers of their cancelled or delayed flights.
"As many as 228 flights -- 131 departures and 97 arrivals-- have been cancelled due to low visibility, so far," the airport official said.
In addition to this, five flights have been diverted so far, he said.
Earlier, the Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), in a statement, said, "Our on-ground officials are working closely with all stakeholders to assist passengers and provide necessary support across Terminals.
"Low visibility (below minima), due to dense fog, has severely impacted operations at Delhi and other airports across northern India, which is unfortunately beyond our control," IndiGo said in a statement.
As operations are adjusted to prevailing weather conditions, some flights may experience delays, while a few others may be proactively cancelled during the day to prioritise safety and minimise extended waiting at the airport, the airline said in a statement.
IndiGo, however, did not say how many of its flights were cancelled or delayed.
The airline said its teams are "closely monitoring" the situation and coordinating with Delhi airport.
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IndiGo also said it issued advisories to its customers and "proactively" informing them, to minimise inconvenience.
“Poor visibility due to dense fog in Delhi this morning has impacted flight operations for all airlines. We are closely monitoring conditions and will resume operations as soon as it is safe to do so,” Air India said in a post on X in the morning.
It also said that some flights have been cancelled In the interest of safety, and to avoid prolonged uncertainty for the guests, while listing out some 40 arrivals and departures that it had cancelled for the day.
Delhi airport is the country's busiest, handling around 1,300 flight movements daily.
