The Observer An IIJNM publication
Ten months on, there is no sign of BMTC’s colour codes to maintain better identity of buses | P 2
Vol 19, Issue 12
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
He just wouldn’t listen, wanted me off the bus, says Bhoomika
T
he KSRTC bus conductor who pushed a pre-university student out of a moving bus eight days ago is yet to be arrested. His employer says it will conduct a departmental inquiry into the incident. Bhoomika, a student of Jyothi Kendriya Vidyalaya in Yelachenahalli, Kanakapura
Observer special Road, informed The Observer she boarded the bus at 3pm on November 11 from her college stop. Soon after, when she showed her student pass to the conductor, he asked her to get down saying passes were not allowed on the bus. She pleaded with him and said she would alight at the next
Bhoomika sustained injuries on her head and neck, and was left with broken teeth stop. But, in a flash, he pushed her out when the vehicle was near the Yelachenahalli Metro station, she added.
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Maski taluk in Raichur district lacks public toilets; villagers forced to defecate in open | P 4
Conductor who threw girl out of moving bus yet to be arrested Adilin Beatrice C
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Passersby took a bleeding Bhoomika to Sri Sai Ram Hospital, Yelachenahalli. She had sustained injuries on her head and neck, and was left with broken teeth. “I am a regular passenger from Yelachenahalli to Kanakapura town. Since my college got over early, I didn’t take the usual bus. I never thought a ride on a different bus would affect me so much. I showed my student pass to the conductor, but he refused to accept it. He didn’t even ask me to get a ticket. He just wanted me to get down from the bus. I agreed to get down at the next stop, but he pushed me before that,” Bhoomika, 16, said “After the incident, my parents approached a local depot. They told them to come on Sunday evening. That is when we lodged a complaint at the Konanakunte
police station,” the first-year PU student said. Srinivas Prasad, a police officer at the Konanakunte police station, said: “The girl’s parents came to file a complaint on Saturday. After that, we sent a letter to the KSRTC and the local depot. We are yet to arrest the conductor.” At the KSRTC head office, an official who did not want to be named said: “We received the letter from the Konanakunte police station yesterday. Soon after that, we suspended the bus conductor. We will conduct a departmental inquiry into the incident before taking action. Mostly it will be a fine or a block on his increments. In the worst case, it will be dismissal. We may even compensate the victim her hospital expenses.” adilin.b@iijnm.org
News briefs Airtel, Vodafone-Idea to increase tariffs in Dec.
Reeling under the impact of the Supreme Court’s ruling on adjusted gross revenue (AGR), Vodafone-Idea and Airtel on Monday announced that they will increase tariffs from December.
‘Corruption in BBMP’
Leader of the opposition in the BBMP council Abdul Wajid on Monday alleged misappropriation of funds in BBMP projects taken up after the BJP came to power in the civic body.
‘Israeli settlements OK’
The Trump administration has said it no longer considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank to be a violation of international law, reversing four decades of US policy and further undermining the Palestinians’ effort to gain statehood.
Surplus reserves
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said transfer of surplus reserves from the RBI to the government in future would depend on net income and other parameters.
Koramangala residents want Metro Karnataka sees rise in line, BMRCL says it is not possible crimes against SCs
Aarthi N
Shoby Krishna G
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esidents of Koramangala want the Ejipura-Koramangala elevated corridor replaced with the Metro line from Baiyappanahalli to Silk Board to decongest the area. But officials say it is not possible to do so. “We’re trying to connect all the possible places in the city through the Metro, but Baiyappanahalli to Silk Board is not in our plans,” B.L.Yashavanth Chavan,PRO of BMRCL, informed The Observer. Jayanti, a resident of Koramangala, shared: “There is no proper route to Silk Board. If the Metro is introduced on this line, a lot of people will be benefitted especially working people who have their offices in the Silk Board area and beyond. By constructing a Metro line, traffic in the city will also decrease and it will also benefit people living in and around the area.” Satish R, an IT company employee, noted: “By building this
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arnataka registered an increase in crimes against the scheduled castes, shows the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report for 2017, released last month. Crimes against SCs registered under IPC increased from 1,852 cases in 2015 to 1,869 in 2016. The number increased to 1,878 in 2017, according to the ‘Crime in India’ report, released by NCRB.
The under-construction flyover in Koramangala leaves residents in trouble. They want a Metro line instead of the flyover | Credit: Aarthi N flyover for the past two years, traffic has increased in this area. What is the use of a flyover when traffic is going to be the same even after constructing it? But if the Metro is constructed, a lot of people will use it. When there’s such connectivity, the amount of traffic, pollution, and tension will reduce at a large scale.”
Sommu, an autorickshaw driver said that if the flyover is built, only one side from Madiwala to Domlur side would be useful. The other side would not be useful. It took more than an hour to cross the signal. Also, the road is in a very bad condition due to the ongoing construction. Continued on page 2
NCRB report In 2017, Karnataka registered the highest number of incidents (1,298) with 1,520 victims under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. This was next only to Uttar Pradesh (2,309 incidents). Except for these two states, all other states registered close to 400 cases or less. Sandeep Patil, joint commissioner of police (crime) said: “We
monitor all crimes in the city including crimes against SCs and STs. It is a fact that crimes which have been solved do not get reported or highlighted, unlike the ones which do not get solved.” The contingency plan report by the Commissionerate of Social Welfare, Karnataka, provides a comprehensive picture of the roles of every authority after an atrocity has been committed and the deadline within which action must be taken. Some of the IPC sections under the ambit of the SC/ST Act include murder (Sec. 302), grievous hurt (Sections 325 and 326), voyeurism (Sec. 354), and kidnapping and abduction (Sec. 363). Karnataka, with a SC population of 104.7 lakh, accounted for 4.3% of the total crimes against SCs compared to other states. On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan registered a decline in crime against SCs. Continued on page 3