Governor gives assent to ordinance increasing SC/ST reservation in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): The SC/ST reservation in poll-bound Karnataka is all set to go up, with state Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot giving his assent to an ordinance in this connection.
With the passage of the ordinance, which was in accordance with the Justice Nagamohan Das committee report, the reservation for the Scheduled Castes will increase from the existing 15 per cent to 17 per cent. For the Scheduled Tribes, it will be 7 per cent from the existing 3 per cent.
The state cabinet had cleared the ordinance a few days ago. On Sunday, it got the governor's nod.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai welcomed the decision and said the ordinance will be tabled in both Houses of the Karnataka Legislature to get it cleared there.
"Our government marched ahead with a commitment to increase the reservation. This is a gift from our government to the SC/STs," Bommai said.
The ordinance is aimed at providing reservation of seats in educational institutions in Karnataka and of appointments or posts in the services under the state for the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.
The gazette notification said the number of castes increased drastically after the inclusion of some more communities.
The total population of SCs and STs in the state went up by leaps and bounds, it added.
The notification further said in 1976 as per the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders (Amendment) Act, 1976 (Central Act 108 of 1976), the geographical limitations attached to the castes were removed which also led to extraordinary increase in the population of SCs and STs in the state.
The move is seen as an attempt by the BJP government in Karnataka to woo the SC/ST communities ahead of assembly elections, which are about six months away.
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ISRO successfully conducts second integrated air drop test for Gaganyaan mission
New Delhi (PTI): Space agency ISRO has successfully conducted the second integrated air drop test (IADT-02) for the upcoming Gaganyaan mission at the space station in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota.
The system is essential to ensure a safe recovery of the crew module -- the capsule in which astronauts sit during a human flight -- during re-entry and landing.
Union minister Jitendra Singh congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for successfully conducting the test.
"Congratulations #ISRO for the successful accomplishment of Second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) for #Gaganyaan, India's first Human Space flight scheduled next year. The second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) was successfully conducted at Satish Dhawan Space Station Sriharikota," Singh said in a post on X.
The IADT-02 follows the successful completion of the first IADT, which took place on August 24, 2025, at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Air drop tests recreate the last leg of a spacecraft's return to Earth. An aircraft or helicopter drops the spacecraft from a height to test various systems under different scenarios.
These are the deployment of the parachute system in case the mission is aborted mid-flight, system performance when one parachute fails to open and the spacecraft's orientation and safety during splashdown etc.
In the IADT-02 test, a simulated crew module, weighing about 5.7 tonnes, was lifted by an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter to an altitude of about three kilometres and released over a designated drop zone in the sea, near the Sriharikota coast.
In a statement, the ISRO said, "Ten parachutes of four types were deployed in a precise sequence during the descent of the crew module, gradually reducing the velocity for safe touchdown. Subsequently, the simulated crew module was successfully recovered in coordination with the Indian Navy."
