Heatwave alert in north Karnataka segments going to polls on May 7, rain predicted in Bengaluru
Bengaluru (PTI): An orange alert for heat wave has been issued in most of the 14 Karnataka districts where Lok Sabha constituencies are going to polls on May 7, as temperatures hit 42 to 44 degrees Celsius in the last couple of days, whereas Bengaluru could get light rains in the coming days.
The Election Commission has made arrangements to mitigate the heat in the polling centres, hoping that the voter turnout will not be affected by the weather conditions.
Separately, the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) has issued a red alert for five districts -- Bagalkot, Belagavi, Dharwad, Haveri and Koppal – till May 9.
The 14 segments where polling is set to take place on May 7 are Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Bellary, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davangere andShimoga.
In the polling centres of these constituencies, the Election Commission has set up tents, provided additional fans and chairs and set up drinking water dispensers and put ambulances on standby in polling centres to ensure that voters do not face heat-related distress.
Incidentally, Kalaburgi district (Gulbarga Lok Sabha constituency), has been recording the highest maximum temperature of over 44 degrees Celsius for the past seven days, according to IMD.
Meanwhile, even as Bengalureans awaited the rains with bated breath, the showers skipped the IT hub on May 5.
According to C S Patil, Director of the Meteorological Centre, Bengaluru, IMD, there was only 4 cm of rain in Karnataka on May 5. But the IMD predicts light to moderate rain tomorrow in both Bengaluru Urban and Rural districts.
Maximum temperatures remained steady at an average of 37 degrees Celsius in the city. May 6 too will see a similar maximum temperature range.
While Bengaluru city received 4mm to 30mm rain in the last four days, there was heavy downpour in Hosakote district, which falls under Bengaluru Rural district, particularly on May 3.
According to KSNDMC, on May 3 alone, Hosakote received 79.5mm of rainfall, the highest in Karnataka.
The thunderstorm brought its own share of heartbreaks. In Hosakote district, a 55-year-old woman died when struck by lightning on May 3.
“Rathnama belonged to Ganagalu village. She was taking her goats for grazing in an open field when the incident occurred. Some of her goats – about 15 or so – were also struck by lightning,” Bengaluru Rural Superintendent of Police Mallikarjun Baladandi said.
People also posted on social media about the widespread damage to property caused to rain. According to them, gusty winds and heavy rain in Old Mysuru Region (OMR) had severely damaged banana plantations in the districts of Ramanagara, Mandya, Mysuru and Chamarajanagara.
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Using power to create Hindu-Muslim rift not in state or country's interest: Rahul on Sambhal clashes
New Delhi, Nov 25: A day after violence rocked Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the BJP's use of power to create a rift between Hindus and Muslims was neither in the interest of the state nor the country.
He also urged the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter as soon as possible.
Three people were killed and scores of others, including security and administration personnel, injured on Sunday as protesters opposing a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque in Sambhal clashed with police. A fourth injured person died on Monday.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, "The biased and hasty attitude of the state government on the recent dispute in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, is extremely unfortunate. I express my deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones in the violence and firing."
The administration, without listening to all the parties, insensitively took action that vitiated the atmosphere further and led to the deaths of people -- for which the BJP government is directly responsible, he charged.
"The BJP's use of power to create a rift and discrimination between Hindu-Muslim communities is neither in the interest of the state nor the country. I request the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter as soon as possible and do justice," Gandhi said.
The former Congress chief also appealed for peace and mutual harmony.
"We all have to join together to ensure that India moves forward on the path of unity and constitution, not communalism and hatred," Gandhi asserted.
The district administration has already imposed prohibitory orders and barred the entry of outsiders till November 30 following Sunday's clashes.
Internet services were soon suspended in Sambhal tehsil for 24 hours and the district administration declared a holiday in all schools for Monday.
Violence broke out in the district as protesters opposing the survey of the Jama Masjid clashed with security personnel. The protesters torched vehicles and pelted the police with stones while the security personnel used tear gas and batons to disperse the mob.
Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since November 19 when the Jama Masjid was first surveyed on the court's orders following a petition claiming that a Harihar temple had stood at the site.
On Sunday, trouble started early when a large group of people gathered near the mosque and started shouting slogans as the survey team began its work.
District officials said the survey could not be completed on Tuesday and was planned for Sunday to avoid interference with afternoon prayers.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Moradabad) Muniraj told reporters on Monday that Naeem, Bilal and Nauman -- the three men who died in Sunday's violence -- had been buried. All three were aged about 25.
He later confirmed the death of a fourth person.
Divisional Commissioner (Moradabad) Aunjaneya Kumar Singh said on Sunday, "Shots were fired by miscreants... the PRO of the superintendent of police suffered a gunshot to the leg, the circle officer was hit by pellets and 15 to 20 security personnel were injured in the violence."
A constable also suffered a serious head injury while the deputy collector fractured his leg, he had said.
The Congress on Sunday alleged that the Adityanath administration was squarely responsible for killing innocents and only the BJP-RSS was guilty of "setting fire" to peace and harmony in Sambhal.
The opposition party had said the videos of direct firing on the protesters depicted the horrifying result of a "well-planned conspiracy" by Adityanath and the BJP-RSS.
संभल, उत्तर प्रदेश में हालिया विवाद पर राज्य सरकार का पक्षपात और जल्दबाज़ी भरा रवैया बेहद दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण है। हिंसा और फायरिंग में जिन्होंने अपनों को खोया है उनके प्रति मेरी गहरी संवेदनाएं हैं।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 25, 2024
प्रशासन द्वारा बिना सभी पक्षों को सुने और असंवेदनशीलता से की गई कार्रवाई ने माहौल और…
