People must wear masks while celebrating New Year: Health Minister K Sudhakar
Belagavi (K'taka), Dec 26: In view of rising COVID-19 cases in some countries, the Karnataka government on Monday said masks will be compulsory during the New Year celebrations.
Celebrations on New Year's Day should last only till 1 am, Health Minister K Sudhakar said.
On the vaccination front, the minister said the government has insisted that people should take the booster dose. He appealed to senior citizens, people with co-morbidities, pregnant women and children to avoid crowded places.
"Masks will be compulsory at closed places, and air conditioned rooms, and crowded places in outdoor celebrations. There should not be more people than the permitted capacity in places where the celebrations take place," Sudhakar said.
He was speaking reporters after attending a meeting chaired by Revenue Minister R Ashoka, who is the vice-chairperson of the State Disaster Management Committee.
According to Sudhakar, two per cent random testing of international passengers will continue at the Bengaluru and Mangaluru international airports.
Bowring Hospital in Bengaluru and Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru have been designated as two quarantine centres for international passengers who test positive for COVID-19, he added.
The samples of a passenger, who returned to the state from China, has been sent for genome sequencing to a lab, the minister said.
Regarding JD(S)' 'Pancharatna Yatra' led by its party leader H D Kumaraswamy, the minister stated that the foot march can continue but reiterated that participants should adhere to COVID appropriate behaviour to safeguard themselves.
The minister said the Deputy Commissioners, Chief Executive Officers of district panchayats, District Health Officers, District Surveillance Officers and the experts' committee members will oversee COVID management in all the districts in the state.
According to Sudhakar, the health infrastructure and staff have been increased substantially including ICU beds, oxygen beds, oxygen capacity and medical and paramedical staff ever since COVID-19 broke out more than two years ago, which will be sufficient to tackle any situation.
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Karnataka Governor gives assent to legislation against ‘honour killing’ in inter-caste marriages
Bengaluru: The government has brought into force the Karnataka Freedom of Choice in Marriage and Prevention and Prohibition of Crimes in the name of honour and tradition (Eva Nammava Eva Nammava) Act, 2026, intended to restrict ‘honour killings’ in inter-caste marriages.
According to The Indian Express, the legislation received assent from Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot on April 9 and was officially notified in the state gazette on April 10. The law had been passed unanimously by the state legislature last month.
The Bill was proposed by the Congress government in the wake of caste-linked ‘honour killings’ in the state, including the December 21, 2025, murder near Hubli of a 20-year-old Lingayat woman by her father for marrying a man from another caste.
The phrase ‘Eva Nammava Eva Nammava’ in the title is in reference to the message of universal humanity that the Lingayat saint Basavanna espoused. Basavanna, who rebelled against the caste system to lay the foundation of the Lingayat faith system, an amalgamation of all castes, used the words meaning ‘he is a part of me’ to say all people are one.
Under the new law, crimes committed in the name of ‘honour’, including murder, assault, threats, and social boycott, are specifically addressed with stringent punishments. ‘Honour killing’ offences carry a minimum imprisonment of five years, while serious assaults attract at least three years in jail.
The new law defines the social boycott of inter-caste couples as forcible eviction to remote corners of villages, refusal to provide services, refusal to provide work, refusal to conduct business, denial of loans and admissions to schools, and makes it punishable.
In the case of ‘honour killings’ per se, the new law prescribes a minimum imprisonment of five years, and in the case of assaults, a prison term that is not less than three years for serious injury and two years for minor injuries.
The offences under the proposed law are cognisable and non-bailable, which means police can carry out arrests without court permissions after taking up a case.
The legislation follows several reported inter-caste relationship-related killings in Karnataka in 2025, including cases in Raichur and another involving 18-year-old Kavita.
The law to protect the freedom of choice in marriages is among several social bills that the Congress government has brought out in line with its policies for the backward and downtrodden communities in the state.
