No proposal to impose lockdown, says CM Bommai
Davanagere, Nov 29: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday dismissed fears in some quarters over any possible lockdown amid COVID-19 cases in some educational institutions and the detection of the Omicron, a variant of COVID virus in some parts of the world.
Allaying the apprehensions, he made it clear that there was no proposal to impose lockdown in the State.
"We have instructed adherence to strict precautions at schools and colleges, but not to close them. There is no proposal to impose the lockdown," he said.
Speaking to reporters here, the Chief Minister urged the people not to panic about Omicron, and asked them to strictly follow COVID-19 guidelines.
He said those arriving from the countries where Omicron variant was found are being screened at the airports and that they would be allowed into the cities only if they test negative.
Bommai said a negative report has been made mandatory for students from Kerala who are studying in Karnataka and a second test is being done on them on the seventh day of the first negative report.
The State government is in constant consultation with experts and the Union government, and precautions are being taken according to their guidelines, he said.
Replying to a question about a person who arrived from South Africa found to be having different symptoms of the pandemic, Bommai said, "The test report of the person has been sent for genome sequencing. Exact variant of the virus would be known from the genome sequencing report."
Regarding the booster dose for health workers, Bommai said his government is awaiting the instructions from the Centre in that regard.
"Our concern is that it is already over six months since the health workers received two doses of the vaccine. We will act according to directions from the Centre," Bommai said.
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Karnataka Assembly passes bill on Palace Grounds amid opposition protest
Bengaluru, Mar 6 (PTI): The Karnataka Assembly on Thursday passed the Bangalore Palace (Utilisation and Regulation of Land) Bill, reaffirming state ownership over 472 acres and 16 guntas of land here, amid protests by the opposition BJP.
During the discussion, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil said the state government would have to provide Rs 200 crore worth of Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) for each acre of land, which means that for 15 acres, Rs 3,000 crore worth of TDR would be issued.
“If we accept it, then this 2-km stretch of road will become the costliest road in the world. If we accept it then how are we going to develop the city in later stages? How will you carry out development works?” asked Patil.
He also pointed out that this question was raised not only under the Congress government but also during the previous BJP regime.
However, the BJP-led cabinet has opposed the project.
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“Suppose we agree to it then, what will be the valuation of the 472 acres? It will be lakhs and lakhs of crores of rupees. Can we accept?” Patil wondered.
The Minister said the government had previously exercised its executive powers to issue an ordinance, which was approved by the Governor. Now the government is bringing a bill with two amendments.
“In this bill, we have made provisions either to develop or drop the road development work,” Patil explained.
However, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra and BJP MLA Arvind Bellad opposed the move, alleging that the government was targetting Yaduveer Krishna Datta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the scion of the Mysuru royal family, and the BJP MP from Mysuru-Kodagu constituency out of political vendetta.
“We talk of 472 acres of Mysuru Maharaja but here there are many Maharajas who too own 400 acres, 500 acres and thousands of acres of land, which is known to everyone,” Bellad said.
He slammed the Congress government, saying political power should not be misused for personal vendetta.
“Why (the then Deputy Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah brought the law in 1996 pertaining to the Bangalore Palace? Why are you setting eyes on the Bangalore Palace?” he asked.
Vijayendra charged that Wadiyar won the election on BJP ticket so the state government realised that it should acquire it.
“This bill has been brought for political vengeance. We are not discussing whether Rs 3,000 crore is exorbitant or not but the moment Yaduveer became MP, the state government woke up. You should be ashamed. This house should not be used for political vendetta,” he said.
Intervening, Minister Priyank Kharge said Vijayendra should not have raised it because the intention behind building the road was noble.
According to him, the BJP too had the same plan when it was in power.
He sought to know whether thousands of crores of rupees be spent on a road which should have cost significantly less.
In response, BJP MLA B A Basavaraj (Byrathi) said issuing TDR will not be a burden on the state government and appealed to the ruling Congress to reconsider its stance.
Minister Ramalinga Reddy too explained that the Karnataka government acquired the entire land way back in 1996.
The Mysuru royal family went to the High Court, which gave ruling in favour of the state government. The royal family then approached the Supreme Court, where the case is still going on, the Minister pointed out.
“The final judgment is pending in the SC to decide whether the acquisition was right or wrong. If the SC says it’s the royal family’s property then let it be so. If the order is in the state government’s favour then we can take a decision. The bill is only about it,” Reddy explained.
Speaker U T Khader then called for a voice vote and the bill was passed by the Assembly amidst opposition BJP’s discontent.
