Karnataka declares 130 taluks in 23 districts as flood-hit
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Thursday declared 130 taluks in 23 districts as flood affected in the state, and has ordered the local administrations to take up necessary relief measures there.
The government has made a declaration to this effect following the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) report.
In the backdrop of large-scale destruction caused to lives, houses, crops and basic infrastructure due to torrential rain and floods in this August monsoon season, 130 taluks in 23 districts of the state have been declared flood affected with immediate effect until further orders, the government order said.
The government has ordered the district administration to take necessary relief measures in the taluks that have been declared flood affected in accordance with State disaster relief fund (SDRF)/NDRF norms and by strictly following the orders or circulars issued by the government from time to time, it added.
The government noted that due to torrential rain in the state in August and heavy inflow from neighbouring Maharashtra into the Krishna basin there were floods in several parts of north Karnataka, and during the same time there were floods in coastal and Malnad region too causing large-scale destruction.
Belagavi district has the highest number of 14 taluks that have been declared flood affected, while the least is in Chamarajanagara and Mandya with one taluk each.
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa had on Monday told a central team that visited the state to assess the damage that Karnataka has suffered a loss of Rs 8,071 crore due to the recent floods.
Heavy rainfall since August 1 has killed at least 20 people, displaced thousands, damaged more than 10,000 homes and crops in about 4.03 lakh hectares, and wrecked 14,182 km of roads.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
