Mangalore This Week - Nov 19 - 25
Weekly Round-up by Anisa Fathima
Teacher's Misbehaviour
Mangalore, Nov 25: The beginning of the week witnessed an incident involving a teacher who alleged beat up a student as punishment for misbehaviour. Following the incident school children and dalit leaders staged a protest demanding an apology from the teacher.
The case is just one of the many examples of assaults on students by teachers that have been taking place in the recent times. Despite a law against using the stick on students, teachers have continuously been violating the rule. Students become easy prey to teachers who are frustrated with their own problems, and even a small mistake on the part of the child gives a vent to these frustrations, resulting in assaults. In this case, the boy allegedly misbehaved with the teacher, but instead of assaulting, teacher should have pointed out his mistake verbally and thereby become an example for the students to follow.
KUNDAPUR: PUBLIC GHERAO SCHOOL OPPOSING TEACHER’S MISBEHAVIOUR
Theft in Mangalore
It was a week abounding with theft cases. Thieves struck two jewellery shops in a matter of just 24 hours; but that was not all, there was also a case of theft at a lodge in Sullia. The theft at one of the jewellery shops was one of the biggest in recent times, with gold worth Rs 7.25 lac was stolen.
Theft cases are something that have always worried the police and citizens. Security measures, especially in gold showrooms, can never be too much. Theft is one crime that is difficult to curb, as responsibility to take preventive measures rests more with owners than with the police or the administration. For most thieves, the inclination to steal stems from a poor financial situation and a struggle for existence. Jailing them for a few days is not enough; unless measures are taken such that there is no need to steal, the menace will continue. Of course, this not the case always - many well to do people also get tempted at the thought of easy money. Only way out is installation of highly sensitive security systems that alert the police immediately.
UDUPI: THEFT WORTH RS 7.25 LAC FROM PADMASHREE JEWELLERS
MANGALORE: THEFT IN 'CITY JEWELLERS' AT PANDESHWAR
Sullia: Gold Worth Rs 1 lac Stolen from Lodge
Assault on Senior Citizen
Bad news continued to rock headlines as a senior citizen was first kidnapped and then assaulted by six people, including his own son in Puttur. The man was thrown on the roadside after being assaulted. Though the motive is not clear, it might have been be a robbery case.
We have had plenty of incidents of women or young men being robbed or assaulted but this case is unique not because the attack was on a senior citizen, but because the culprit was his own son. Where have our values gone? A section of the younger generation seems to be slowly losing societal values and getting in to the grip of criminal activities. What can one say when a son attacks his father? It may be said that the son may have been brought up badly, but the attack would have most probably been done under peer pressure.
PUTTUR: ASSAULT ON SENIOR CITIZEN - SIX INCLUDING SON ARRESTED
Mangalore - Bangalore 'Train'
Amidst all the disheartening items of news, the one that evoked some cheer was the news of the commencement of Mangalore-Bangalore train service from January 2007. The work on routes seems to have been completed and goods trains are already running on the track.
This is indeed good news for regular commuters between the two cities. The condition of the highways and the Ghats are such that traveling by road is nothing less than a horrible ordeal, and traveling by air is not an option for most people as far as cost is concerned. Road travel nowadays takes more than 8 hours; therefore, traveling by train would be much more feasible both in terms of cost, time and comfort. However, countless promises about the train service have been made before, and there is no reason not to doubt that this time too, the promises may result in little action.
MANGALORE-BANGALORE TRAIN SERVICE TO RESUME FROM JAN '07
Corruption in NMPT
Meanwhile, NMPT deputy traffic manager B R Sadashiva was arrested by the CBI on charges of corruption while he was caught red-handed accepting a bribe of Rs 10,000. The CBI acted quickly following a complaint and laid a trap.
Officials demanding bribe to get work done is nothing new but for a change, it was a relief to know that such officers are arrested too. The CBI was required to take this action; now the local bodies including the police too should take a cue and follow its footsteps. Sadly the law machinery rests in the hands of some powerful people who can easily get away with any charge, without having to suffer even a little. A section of the police itself is a corrupt lot, which lets go of erring people after a 'fine' is paid. It is a vicious circle of corrupt people, and unless the citizens wake up and refuse to pay bribes and complaint to bodies such as Lokayukta and CBI, not much can be hoped.
MANGALORE: CBI ARRESTS NMPT DEPUTY TRAFFIC MANAGER
Cheating
The end of the week revealed a fraud case involving a man who along with his friends cheated five banks of Rs 8 crore. The gang had been do this since 2003, but it is only now that the incident came to light after a company on whose name they had procured a loan registered a complaint.
The incident again puts emphasis on the easiness in procuring loans by producing false documents and casts a question on the vulnerability of the banks. The banks never realized the fraud case. There has to be a system to detect false documents and though people are intelligent enough to fool any security system, there has to be at least a more stringent monitoring of people who take large amount of loans. Severe punishment for offenders may deter others from doing the same. Hope the law bodies will also look in to other such cases, especially where highly influential people are concerned.
MANGALORE: PERSON ARRESTED FOR CHEATING RS 8 CRORE TO FIVE BANKS
The happenings of the week were not so cheerful, yet provided food for thought. Let's hope the coming week is better. See you next week!
Anisa Fathima
Daijiworld.com - Mangalore
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