Total bandh in Bidar.

The bandh, called by the NDA and other parties against the hike in diesel price and allowing FDI in multi-brand retail, on Thurday, was near-total in Bidar.

Several shops and private offices remained closed. The district administration had declared a holiday for schools.

NEKRTC bus services were withdrawn after operating for a few hours in the morning. Bharatiya Janata Party activists took out a rally and criticised the UPA government for making life difficult for the poor.

The former president of the zilla panchayat Kushal Patil Gadagi, district BJP general secretary Babu Wali, Rajkumar Chidri, Shivaputra Vaidya, and Shashi Hosalli joined the rally.

The Left parties held a rally at Bhagat Singh Circle. They said that the UPA government was adopting double standards and lying to the people.

The government had enough money to waive debts of corporate houses, claimed CPI leader Baburao Honna. “Increase in diesel price will lead to a rise in prices of all commodities,” he said.

Janata Dal (Secular) leaders Naseemoddin Patel, Shantling Sawalagi, D.K. Sidram, and Prabhurao Tarnalli joined the rally.

Members of the Jai Karnataka Rakshana Vedike carried empty cylinders on their backs to mark their protest against the cap on subsidised LPG cylinders.

More:http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article3920928.ece

20 questions, and Ganesh will appear

Residents of Bidar will be treated to a very special episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati this Ganesh festival.

Yogesh Pathak, an ardent fan of Amitabh Bachchan, has taken inspiration from the game show hosted by the thespian, while installing the Ganesh idol this year.

The platform has mannequins representing the Bollywood superstar and 20 participants on hot seats. A recorded voice asks questions based on mythology and the scriptures, and each participant gives answers. After 20 questions, the Ganesh idol emerges from the background.

A short scene of the meeting of Krishna and his friend Sudama will also be shown on stage.

The installation on the Raghavendra temple premises will be inaugurated on Wednesday.

“The installation took nearly eight months of hard work,” Mr. Pathak told presspersons here on Tuesday.

He has been installing Ganesh idols in the old city for seven years now.

“After the festival is over, I keep thinking about next year’s installation. I like to try new things,” he said.

The installation cost Rs. 3.5 lakh. The Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Samaj Seva Charitable Trust and Srirang Ganesh Mandal extended support, Mr. Pathak said.

More:http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article3913434.ece

Flight service in Bidar Shettar to take team to Manmohan

Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar will lead a delegation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, urging him to resolve the issues delaying flight operations in Bidar, district in-charge Minister Sunil Valyapure said.

He was speaking after inaugurating the Hyderabad Karnataka Liberation Day celebrations here on Monday.

“All Cabinet members will be part of the delegation. We will convince the Prime Minister to direct the Civil Aviation Ministry officials to start flights from Bidar,” he told presspersons on Monday.

Memorandum

He said that a memorandum between the Airports Authority of India and GMR infrastructure company (that built the Hyderabad International Airport) was posing problems here.

“I am sure the Union government will find a solution to the problem,” Mr. Valyapure said.

More:http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-miscellaneous/tp-others/article3909375.ece