Author: TheStateLine

New Delhi: The Centre on Thursday said it has approved fisheries projects worth ₹1,086.51 crore for Odisha under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) to strengthen marine fisheries infrastructure, improve fishermen's livelihoods and enhance the state's export competitiveness. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Union Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan Singh) said the approved projects carry a Central share of ₹416.84 crore and include the development of fishing harbours, fish landing centres, cold chain facilities and other marine fisheries infrastructure. The minister said the Centre has also approved the modernisation of Paradip Fishing Harbour at a cost of ₹108.91 crore under the Central Sector component of PMMSY. Under the Fisheri...

New Delhi/Bengaluru: The Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) on Thursday upheld the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) directive requiring Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu for the next 15 days, rejecting the state's appeal for a review. The decision was taken at an emergency meeting chaired by CWMA Chairman S.K. Haldar, where officials from both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu presented their submissions on the prevailing water situation.Representing Karnataka, Additional Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta argued that deficient monsoon rainfall had sharply reduced inflows into the state's reservoirs, making it difficult to meet irrigation and drinking water requirements. Karnataka submitted that only 38.736 TMC of water had flowed into its four maj...

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka minister N. Chaluvarayaswamy on Thursday appealed to political parties to avoid politicising the Cauvery water dispute, saying the state's immediate priority is to safeguard drinking water amid deficient rainfall in the Cauvery basin. Addressing a press conference, Chaluvarayaswamy said Karnataka was facing a serious water shortage, with several districts, including Bengaluru, experiencing drinking water concerns due to poor monsoon rainfall. He said the government's foremost responsibility was to ensure drinking water supply before considering other demands. Refuting allegations that Karnataka had released water to Tamil Nadu overnight, he said the state government had not voluntarily released any water and had instead argued before the Cauvery Water Management...

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) has urged the Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka to ensure that no eligible voter is disenfranchised during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, expressing concern over reports that more than 80 lakh names could be deleted. In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer, KPCC Media Wing President and Legislative Council member Ramesh Babu cited media reports claiming that nearly 15% of the state's voters had been identified under categories such as absentee, shifted, multiple registration and other classifications. He alleged that deleting names without proper verification could deprive thousands of eligible citizens of their constitutional right to vote.Ramesh Babu called for fresh physical verifica...

New Delhi: Andhra Pradesh has joined the Group Accident Insurance Scheme (GAIS) for fishermen for the first time during the 2026-27 financial year, extending insurance coverage to 2,84,888 fishers, the Centre informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The Department of Fisheries, under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, said the insurance scheme is being implemented as part of the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), which was launched in 2020-21 with an outlay of ₹20,750 crore to promote the development of the fisheries sector across the country. Under the scheme, fishers and allied fish workers are provided insurance coverage of ₹5 lakh in the event of death or permanent total disability, ₹2.5 lakh for permanent partial disability, and up to ₹25,000 towards ho...

New Delhi: The Centre has approved fisheries projects worth ₹254.23 crore for Goa under two flagship schemes aimed at strengthening the fisheries and aquaculture sector, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. According to the Department of Fisheries, projects worth ₹147.23 crore have been sanctioned under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), while ₹107 crore has been approved under the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). The government said the schemes, implemented since 2020-21 (PMMSY) and 2018-19 (FIDF), focus on the holistic development of fisheries infrastructure, aquaculture, value addition and livelihood opportunities across all states and Union Territories, including Goa.The Centre also highlighted the implementation of the...

New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday said it has expanded educational, economic and social welfare initiatives for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), senior citizens and Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in Tamil Nadu, with a sharp increase in scholarship coverage and other social welfare benefits. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale said the number of beneficiaries under the Post-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu rose from 6.44 lakh in 2023-24 to 9.35 lakh in 2024-25, and further to 9.67 lakh in 2025-26. The Pre-Matric Scholarship for SCs and Others benefited 5.83 lakh students in 2025-26, up from 3.36 lakh in 2023-24. The minister said welfare schemes for OBCs also witnessed signi...

Bengaluru: In a major crackdown on mobile phone thefts, the Whitefield Division Police have recovered 1,119 stolen mobile phones worth around ₹2.70 crore during a month-long operation targeting organised theft networks across Bengaluru. The operation was carried out by special police teams under the supervision of Whitefield Deputy Commissioner of Police Reena Suvarna and Marathahalli Assistant Commissioner of Police Sudhakar. The recovered phones were traced from various parts of Karnataka as well as other states.Among the police stations in the Whitefield division, K.R. Puram recorded the highest recovery with 187 mobile phones, followed by Marathahalli (145), Whitefield (140), Mahadevapura (132), Varthur (120), Kadugodi (110), HAL (110), Bellandur (103), Avalahalli (70) and CEN Police...

Bengaluru: The Whitefield Division Police have arrested three persons, including alleged receivers of stolen property, in connection with a series of house burglaries and theft cases, recovering gold ornaments, cash and vehicles worth over ₹1.28 crore. Police said the operation led to the detection of five theft cases, including four registered at Avalahalli Police Station and one at Bagalur Police Station. The investigation began after a family returned to their locked house in Avalahalli on July 5 to find gold ornaments and around ₹5 lakh in cash missing. During the probe, police arrested the accused and found that the stolen jewellery had allegedly been pawned and sold through two other individuals.The police recovered 475.04 grams of gold ornaments worth about ₹66.50 lakh, ₹9.50 lakh...

Bengaluru/Hassan: Karnataka has decided to appeal before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) against the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) directive ordering the release of 3,500 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu for 15 days, citing low reservoir levels and a severe rainfall deficit. Speaking in Hassan, Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy termed the CWRC's directive "unscientific" and said Karnataka was facing drought-like conditions in several regions. He argued that the state's reservoirs had not received adequate inflows and that ensuring drinking water for Karnataka's residents and farmers should remain the government's top priority.Meanwhile, Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy chaired an emergency meeting in Bengaluru with irrigation department offici...