Minister warns strict action against those creating artificial fertiliser scarcity in Karnataka
Bengaluru, May 9: Karnataka Agriculture Minister B C Patil on Monday warned of stringent action against those who create artificial scarcity of fertilisers and seeds for sowing ahead of monsoon season.
The minister said the government is making sure there is no shortage of fertilisers and seeds in the state.
"Some people are creating artificial scarcity of fertilisers and seeds for sowing. Anyone indulging in such activities will be dealt with an iron hand," Patil told reporters here.
According to him, the estimated demand for fertilisers from April to September this year is 26.76 lakh metric tonnes in the state. In April, the demand for fertilisers was 7.61 lakh metric tonne whereas the initial stock was 5.94 lakh metric tonne.
However, by May 9, 3.91 lakh metric tonne of fertilisers were supplied. Of the total stock of 9.85 lakh tonnes of fertilisers, 2.70 lakh metric tonnes were sold.
"At present, there is a stock of 7.15 lakh metric tonne with the private and cooperative societies. So, there is no shortage of fertilisers in the state," Patil explained.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
