1. Congress MLA T.B. Jayachandra says NICE Road is ‘infructuous’
With the construction of Bengaluru-Mysuru national highway (expressway), the Bangalore–Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project (BMICP) — promoted by Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE) — has become infructuous, former minister and Congress MLA T.B. Jayachandra has said.
A voluminous 392-page report submitted to the State Government in December 2016 by a legislature panel headed by Mr. Jayachandra had indicted NICE for violation of the Framework Agreement (FWA), excess land acquisition, levying toll without laying a concrete road, and illegal mining, among other issues.
Mr. Jayachandra, now Karnataka government’s Special Representative in Delhi, has suggested that the State take over the BMICP and implement the recommendations to provide justice to farmers who lost their agriculture land to the NICE Road project.
2. Tale of two statues in Karnataka
Vandalisation of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue at Gandhi Circle led to tension in Holehonnur, in Bhadravathi taluk of Shivamogga district, on August 21. As news of the incident spread, people gathered at the circle and also blocked vehicular movement on NH 13. Holehonnur police are examining CCTV footage to identify the accused. Additional policemen have been deployed in the town to avoid any untoward incident.
In Madikeri, a 50-year-old statue of General K.S. Thimayya fell following a collision with a KSRTC bus on August 21 early morning. The police said the KSRTC driver crashed into the statue in an attempt to avoid a collision with a pickup jeep approaching from the side. General K.S. Thimayya was the Chief of Army Staff from 1957 to 1961, and his statue was unveiled at the center of Madikeri town in Kodagu district on April 21, 1973.
3. International flights at Bengaluru airport to exclusively shift to Terminal-2 from August 31
All international flight operations at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) will be shifted to Terminal-2 (T-2) from August 31. Currently, all international flight operations are confined to the 15-year-old Terminal-1 (T-1). With this shift, T-1 will cater to only domestic operations.
Singapore Airlines SQ 508 would be the first flight to land at KIA after international flight operations shift to T-2 on August 31. Flight SQ 508 is scheduled to depart from Changi International Airport at 8.50 am and land at KIA at 10.55 am.
4. Body of NRI found near Saundatti dam in Belagavi
A non-resident Indian from Australia was found dead in the Naviluteertha dam near Saundatti in Belagavi district on August 20. The body, floating in the backwaters, was later identified as that of Priyadarshini Lingaraj Patil, 40, of Dharwad.
The deceased had left Australia three days ago, leaving behind her husband and children. Investigation reveal that Ms. Priyadarshini had gone directly to Belagavi but sent her bags by courier to her parents’ home in Dharwad, with a note that she was planning to end her life in Gokak falls.
5. Victoria hospital in Bengaluru now has a clinic for acute and chronic pain
State-run Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru, affiliated to the Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), now runs a clinic to cater to patients with acute and chronic pain, such as cancer pain, musculoskeletal pain, spine-related pain and joint pain. The pain clinic functions from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Room 277 on the second floor in the Master Plan Building of Victoria hospital.
