Mangalore This Week - Oct 15 - 21
by Anisa Fathima - Daijiworld.com Mangalore
Post-Communal Violence scenario
Oct 21: As dust began to settle on the recent Mangalore violence, it was time for investigative teams from across the country to come and give their verdict on who was or wasn’t to blame. Beginning of the week we had the Corps of Detectives (CoD), then the National Minorities Commission, followed by the national human rights activists and finally the Andhra Pradesh Civil Rights Committee.
Mangalore has never hogged such limelight before. As expected the investigative teams found that most of the arrested were innocents, and that the culprits were still at large. The Sangh Parivar was found to have planned the violence by one of the teams, while the blame game by the politicians flew left and right as each pointed finger at the other. Police brutality was another issue the teams concentrated on, and rightly so, for, if the protectors of law themselves indulge in harassment, why blame the commoners? It is no secret that the main agenda of the trouble makers was to disturb communal harmony, but thanks to the peace-loving Mangaloreans, their mission didn’t see much progress.
Whirlwind in Coastal Region
The region was in for more destruction, this time resulting from natural calamity. Lacs and lacs worth of crops were destroyed as a whirlwind hit villages in Kundapur and Puttur regions within 24 hour of each other. Houses were not spared either, though luckily, no casualties were reported.
The crops were grown by the poor farmers by taking huge loans or by saving for years and years, toiling in the field day in day out. All this was destroyed in a matter of minutes. What is pathetic is the administration's apathy in the matter. Even after five days of the Kundapur whirlwind, no official visited the site. Electricity was cut off but the MESCOM officials didn’t take any step to restore it. Roads were blocked with fallen trees. Who will restore all these? The government may offer compensation, but it will never make up for heavy loans these people owe and the years of hard work they put in.
Farangifet Road Crash
The news that left everyone gasping was the sad accident involving the kin of Kodagu SP Dr Ramachandra Rao. The SP lost his wife and mother-in-law while his two children escaped with injuries. The driver too perished when a lorry, while overtaking, rammed into their official Qualis car.
Highway accidents have always been a cause for concern and this particular case is another one in the long list of those killed in accidents on highways. Lorries, buses and tankers are known to compete with each other on highways with little or no concern to other commuters. They too have a responsibility to reach their destinations at specified times, but to do so at the cost of others' lives doesn’t justify anything. The lorry driver and the cleaner fled the scene, as it was clearly their fault. Perhaps imposing speed limits on highways may reduce the problem, but who is to check?
MANGALORE: KODAGU SP'S KIN AND DRIVER DIE IN GHASTLY ROADCRASH AT FARANGIPET
Police Commissionerate for Mangalore
Amidst all the disheartening news, the one news that gave us some sort of a relief was that of the city getting a police commisionerate soon. The law provides that a city with a population of more than 10 lacs should be given the status of a police commissionerate.
File Photo
The issue has been under consideration for over a decade, the recent riots have only accelerated the procedures and fueled its necessity. The district is developing, while some of its regions are becoming more and more communally sensitive. The police found it difficult to control law and order situation in the absence of commissioner. Though it cannot be said that a police commissionerate will solve all problems, it can at least be hoped that the police system would be more organized. What Mangalore needs is a dynamic and honest commissioner, who would not bow down to the dictates of politics nor give the citizens any cause for complaint.
No Full-fledged Passport office for Mangalore
Just as when we were hoping the city would get a full-fledged passport office, our hopes were dashed when the union minister of state for external affairs E Ahmed announced that it was not possible to have such an arrangement in Mangalore.
The reason stated was that any city must receive a minimum of 50,000 applications for three consecutive years, and Mangalore sadly doesn’t come under this category. That means that the thousands of applicants will still have to undergo the tedious task of applying at Bangalore and wait endlessly. People from across the district as well as those from neighboring districts, north Kerala and coastal Karnataka would be greatly benefited from the passport office. It is amazing that Kerala being a smaller state has five passport offices while we have only one!
'NO FULL-FLEDGED PASSPORT OFFICE TO MANGALORE' - E AHMED
Mangalore International Airport - First Fraud Case
The Bajpe Airport was in the news again, this time for not so good a reason. Hardly did the international flight complete 15 days of operation, when the airport had its first brush with imposters. A man with a fake passport issued either from Dubai or Hyderabad traveled in the direct flight from Dubai.
The officials at the airport were quick to discover the felony and took immediate action by deporting him back to Dubai. This speaks volumes of the efficiency of the security measures at the airport but raises the question as to why the Dubai airport officials failed to detect the imposter. The incident, apart from being a tongue-in-cheek reply to those who were skeptic about the security system at the airport, is also reminder to the officials to be extra vigilant and watchful in the future. It also serves as warning to those who think that it is easy to breach security at the airport owing to its lack of sufficient experience in handling international flights.
BAJPE AIRPORT: KASARGOD-BOUND PASSENGER CAUGHT AND DEPORTED TO DUBAI
That's the news this week, a mixture of disappointments, sprinkled with a few heartening news. Enjoy the festive week ahead with a fulfilling Diwali and Eid.
Earlier Weeks