Latest news with #KarnatakaStateBoardforWildlife
The Hindu
19-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Cabinet clears health insurance for three lakh contract, outsourced employees
The State Cabinet on Thursday decided to bring three lakh outsourced and contract employees/workers in various departments and their dependents under the Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust for providing cashless health insurance of up to ₹5 lakh a year. The employees have to contribute ₹100 a year as health insurance premium while the government bears the rest of the cost, according to Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil. Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust was established in 2009 for providing cashless health insurance. Mobile health clinics The Cabinet approved a ₹17.97-crore proposal for providing mobile health clinics in remote areas of the State. The clinics would enable residents of isolated or remote areas to access primary healthcare services. A proposal to declare Mugli-Apsarakonda Marine Sanctuary as Karnataka's first marine sanctuary was also cleared. The sanctuary is spread over 5,959 hectares, near Honnavar in Uttara Kannada district. The proposal was approved by the Karnataka State Board for Wildlife a few years ago. The Cabinet cleared the revised expenditure of ₹742 crore for the Anubhava Mantapa at Basavakalyan in Bidar district. Earlier, the project cost was ₹612 crore and the hike in GST from 12% to 18% on materials is said to be the reason for the cost escalation. Processing unit A ₹35.07-crore proposal of the Horticulture Department to set up a processing unit for mango and other horticultural crops on a PPP model on 28.3 acres at Yalavatti village in Hangal taluk of Haveri district was cleared by the Cabinet. A proposal to rename the Basapura village in Hangal taluk of Haveri district was approved, and the village was renamed as Gerugudda Basapura, Mr. Patil added.
Time of India
15-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
Karnataka set to get its first marine sanctuary near Karwar
Bengaluru: Karnataka is set to get its first marine sanctuary in Uttara Kannada district, with a key committee of Karnataka State Board for Wildlife (SBWL), headed by forest minister Eshwar Khandre , greenlighting the proposal. Formally called Mugli-Apsarakonda Marine Sanctuary , the proposal now awaits the formal nod from the state cabinet. The sanctuary near Karwar will sit over 5,960 hectares, of which 835 hectares comprise the territorial waterbody of Arabian Sea, extending up to 6km from the shore, and another 835 hectares will be laterite plateau. Sources said the proposal has been pending before the state cabinet ever since it was approved by SBWL headed by then CM BS Yediyurappa. The proposal suffered delays due to Covid. In 2022, it was brought back to the front burner. This will be India's seventh marine sanctuary after the two in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and one each in Gujarat, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. The Karnataka sanctuary will have 5,400 hectares of mangrove forests, along with endangered species such as humpback whales, spot-tail sharks, olive-ridley turtles, and 80 species of sea birds. The 14 species of coral reefs found around Netrani Island, over 50 phytoplankton, and more than 100 zooplankton species, along with two species of sea grass and 100-plus species of seaweeds, will also be part of the sanctuary, according to forest department. Bhimgad villagers to be rehabilitated on May 17 The SBWL standing committee has resolved to complete the controversial rehabilitation of villagers from Talaiwadi village in Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary of Khanapur taluk in Belagavi district. This is the first non-tiger reserve rehabilitation project, which courted controversy over disparity in providing financial packages. While the state govt resolved to pay each of the 15 families Rs 15 lakh, villagers demanded more along with other facilities. Forest minister Eshwar Khandre had held a meeting with them in Dec 2024 and convinced the villagers to voluntarily relocate outside the forest. Officials said the villagers will be given cheques at a function in Bhimgad Sanctuary on May 17.
Time of India
15-05-2025
- General
- Time of India
Karnataka, a step away from declaring its first marine sanctuary at Apsarakonda near Karwar
A draft estimation of the boundary of the Mugli-Apsarakonda Marine Sanctuary close to Honnavar, Karnataka. BENGALURU: Resolving hurdles for declaring Karnataka's first marine sanctuary, the standing committee of the State Board for Wildlife (SBWL), headed by Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre , on Wednesday gave its approval to declare ' Mugli-Apsarakonda Marine Sanctuary ' as Karnataka's first marine sanctuary. Deferred multiple times previously, the proposal now awaits the state cabinet nod to be formally notified as the state's first marine sanctuary. Deliberating on the long-pending proposal, the committee unanimously resolved to recommend the project for final approval by the state cabinet. 'The sanctuary will cover an area of 5,960 hectares, out of which 835.02 hectares comprise the territorial water body of the Arabian Sea extending up to 6 km from the shore, and another 835.302 hectares of laterite plateau will be part of the marine sanctuary,' explained a forest official who was part of the meeting. The proposal to declare the first marine sanctuary of Karnataka was pending before the state cabinet ever since it was approved by the Karnataka State Board for Wildlife (SBWL), headed by then CM BS Yediyurappa. He even announced in his budget speech an allocation of Rs 1 crore for setting up the marine sanctuary. However, the proposal was deferred due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Subsequently, in 2022, the official announcement was deferred yet again. However, the project finally gained momentum and was placed before the cabinet on Thursday. Once declared, this will be the seventh marine sanctuary of India after the two in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and one each in Gujarat, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra. Out of the 5,960 hectares, the Mugli-Apsarakonda Marine Sanctuary will have 5,400 hectares of mangrove forests along with endangered species such as humpback whales, spot-tail sharks, olive-ridley turtles, and 80 species of sea birds. The 14 species of coral reefs found around Netrani Island, over 50 phytoplankton, and more than 100 zooplankton species, along with two species of sea grass and 100 plus species of seaweeds, will also be part of the sanctuary, according to senior officials from the Forest Department. Bhimgad villagers to be rehabilitated on May 17 The standing committee of the SBWL also resolved to complete the controversial rehabilitation of villagers from Talaiwadi village in Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary of Khanapur taluk in Belagavi district. This is the first non-tiger reserve rehabilitation project which courted controversy over disparity in providing financial packages. While the state government resolved to pay each of the 15 families Rs 15 lakh, villagers demanded more money along with other facilities. However, Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre held a midnight meeting with the villagers in December 2024 during the winter session of the legislature at Belagavi and convinced the villagers to voluntarily relocate outside the forest. Officials revealed that on May 17, the villagers will be handed over cheques at a function in Bhimgad Sanctuary.
