Bengaluru (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in poll bound Karnataka's northern districts of Yadgiri and Kalaburagi on Thursday to lay foundation stone and inaugurate projects worth more than Rs 10,800 crores.

This will be the second such visit by the Prime Minister to Karnataka this month. He was in Hubballi on January 12 to inaugurate the National Youth Festival, during which he had held a massive road show.

According to an official release, at around 12 noon, in Kodekal, Yadgiri district, the Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone and inaugurate various developmental projects related to irrigation, drinking water besides a National Highway development project.

Later, at around 2:15 PM, Modi will reach Malkhed, Kalaburagi District, where he will distribute title deeds (hakku patra) to the eligible beneficiaries of newly declared revenue villages and also lay the foundation stone for a National Highway project.

The visit also gains significance, as the ruling BJP prepares for assembly polls in Karnataka and has set a target of winning a minimum of 150 out of total 224 seats which will go for polls by May.

Aimed at providing safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections to all households, Modi will lay the foundation stone for Yadgir multi-village drinking water supply scheme under Jal Jeevan Mission at Kodekal in Yadgiri District, also a Water Treatment Plant of 117 MLD will be built under the scheme.

The project, which costs more than Rs 2,050 crore, will provide potable water to about 2.3 lakh households of more than 700 rural habitations and three towns of Yadgiri district.

During the programme, the PM will also inaugurate Narayanpur Left Bank Canal Extension Renovation and Modernisation Project (NLBC ERM).

The project, with a canal carrying capacity of 10,000 cusecs, can irrigate 4.5 lakh hectares of command area. It will benefit more than three lakh farmers in 560 villages of Kalaburgi, Yadagir and Vijaypur districts. The total cost of the project is about Rs 4,700 crores.

Later, he will also lay the foundation stone of the 65.5 km section of NH-150C. This 6-lane Greenfield road project is part of Surat Chennai Expressway. It is being built at a cost of about Rs 2,000 crore.

Further pointing out that about 1,475 unrecorded habitations have been declared as New Revenue villages in five districts of Kalaburagi, Yadgiri, Raichur, Bidar and Vijayapura, the release said, at Malkhed village of Sedam Taluka of Kalaburagi district, the Prime Minister will distribute title deeds (hakku patra) to the eligible beneficiaries of these newly declared revenue villages.

The issuance of title deeds to more than 50,000 beneficiaries, who are largely from the marginalised and vulnerable communities from the SC, ST and OBC, is a step to provide a formal recognition from the government for their land, and will make them eligible for receiving government services like drinking water, electricity, roads etc.

During the programme, the Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone of the 71 km section of NH-150C. This 6 lane Greenfield road project is also part of Surat Chennai Expressway. It is being built at a cost of more than Rs 2,100 crore.

Surat Chennai Expressway will pass through six states- Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. It will reduce the existing route from 1,600 Kms to 1,270 Kms.

The PM after finishing with his engagements in Karnataka will leave for Mumbai.

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New Delhi, Dec 5: The Delhi High Court on Thursday granted a two-week interim bail on medical grounds to expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar, currently serving life term for raping a minor in UP's Unnao in 2017.

A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma suspended the sentence in the meantime and directed Sengar's medical evaluation in AIIMS, Delhi, besides ordering him to remain in the capital.

"Considering the history of the case as also the medical condition of the applicant, it is directed that the applicant will be released on interim bail for two weeks and he shall seek admission in AIIMS Delhi for a comprehensive medical evaluation," said the bench.

The court sought a report from the AIIMS medical board and posted the matter on December 20.

Sengar is also serving a 10-year jail term in connection with the custodial death of the Unnao rape survivor's father and a plea for interim bail in the case is still pending before a different bench of the high court.

The jailed politician sought the suspension of the sentence for two months on the ground of ailments such as cataract, arguing it required urgent attention.

The court was informed that Sengar suffered from "retinal detachment" which required him to travel to a hospital in Chennai, besides getting treated for other complications in Lucknow.

The plea was opposed by the survivor's lawyer and the CBI.

The counsel for the rape survivor said Sengar should not be released as it would pose a threat to her safety and security.

The CBI counsel said treatment could be given to Senagr in Delhi while he continued to be in custody.

The court considered the medical report filed by the jail authorities in the matter and noted that while a certain medical intervention was required, the MRI date given by G B Pant Hospital was in April, 2026.

"The court can't ignore all the medical conditions that the applicant is suffering from.. Although the union of India has moved an application for withdrawing the security given to the survivor, the same is still continuing as the application is pending in the Supreme Court," the bench said.

The court directed Sengar not to contact the survivor and report to the local CBI official upon release.

Sengar's appeal challenging the trial court's verdict in the main Unnao rape case is pending in the high court and he has sought quashing of the December, 2019 judgement of the trial court that sentenced him to imprisonment for the remainder of his life.

The survivor was kidnapped and raped by Sengar in 2017 when she was a minor.

On March 13, 2020, Sengar was sentenced to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 10 lakh, in connection with the case of custodial death of the rape victim's father. The court also awarded a 10-year jail term to Sengar's brother Atul Singh Sengar and five others.

The father of the rape victim was arrested at the behest of Sengar in a case under the Arms Act. He died in custody on April 9, 2018.

The rape case and other connected cases were transferred to Delhi from a trial court in Uttar Pradesh on the directions of the Supreme Court on August 1, 2019.