Karnataka trio among Padma Shri awardees, Anke Gowda named unsung hero

Anke Gowda, S G Susheelamma and Dr Suresh Hanagavadi from Karnataka have been named recipients of the prestigious Padma Shri Awards, announced on the eve of Republic Day.

The Padma Awards, among India’s highest civilian honours, recognise exceptional contributions across diverse fields. This year, Anke Gowda has been selected under the ‘unsung heroes’ category for her selfless service.

Dr Suresh Hanagavadi, professor of pathology at JJM Medical College and founder of the Karnataka Hemophilia Society, has been honoured for his decades-long contribution to improving the lives of hemophilia patients. A severe hemophilic himself, Hanagavadi has travelled extensively across the country to strengthen hemophilia care services and played a key role in ensuring that expensive medicines are made available free of cost at government district hospitals across Karnataka.

He has also established a state-of-the-art Hemophilia Treatment Centre in Davangere, bringing all inherited blood disorder services under one roof by mobilising support from the public, philanthropists and the government. Recognised earlier as a Changemaker in 2021, Hanagavadi said the Padma honour came as a surprise.

“This is the result of nearly four decades of efforts to get national-level recognition for hemophilia. The silent pain of hemophilia patients has been rewarded. I hope this award helps ensure quality healthcare for hemophilics across the country,” he said, recalling that late playback singer S P Balasubrahmanyam, associated with the Karnataka Hemophilia Society, had often encouraged him to seek national recognition.

S G Susheelamma has also been recognised among this year’s Padma awardees, which celebrate a wide spectrum of unsung heroes from across India. The list includes individuals from marginalised communities, primitive tribes and remote regions, highlighting grassroots contributions that often go unnoticed.

This year’s Padma Shri honours reaffirm the spirit of recognising silent service and transformative social impact from across the length and breadth of the country.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

Indian history video series to be launched at Sabha BLR in Bengaluru

The 15-episode video series titled ‘Indian History, Thali by Thali’ will explore different periods of Indian history through the lens of food. 

The Historically Tempered Collective will launch ‘Indian History, Thali by Thali’, a video series, on January 27 at Sabha BLR.  

History through lens of food

The 15-episode video series will explore different periods of Indian history through the lens of food. The short videos spanning eight to fifteen minutes target youngsters between the ages of 12 and 16 years. 

“We have already released two. One more will be released at the event and the next one in about a week,” said Janaki Nair, senior historian and a member of the collective.   

Engaging format

The videos, produced in an engaging format, feature conversations with professional historians.  

“Given the way a very large number of people are interested in speaking about history lately, even if they’re not necessarily professional historians, we felt we should intervene. We wanted to do it in a popular and accessible format,” Ms. Nair said.  

“While most experts who are speaking in the videos are very senior, they also include a few younger and fresher voices. Therefore, we have been able to communicate in very direct and simple ways,” she added.  

Workshop and panel discussion

Before the launch event, a workshop will also be held for school teachers.  

“The workshop is to look at how to use these videos in creative ways. Without teachers, we feel, this might not be something that youngsters will actually look for. So, we need the intervention of teachers to take it forward,” Ms. Nair said. 

The event will also feature a panel discussion in which, apart from Ms. Nair, Meera Iyer, convenor at INTACH Bengaluru chapter, Saisudha Acharya, nonfiction author and educator, and Ajay Cadambi, educator, would participate.

There is no entry fee for the event and it will be held at Sabha BLR, 6 PM, January 27.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

Conservationists name ultra-rare leopard colour morph in Karnataka as ‘Sandalwood Leopard’. Spotted and Documented for First Time in Karnataka.

Internationally, leopards of this colour morph are referred to as ‘Strawberry leopards’ and have been sporadically recorded in South Africa and in Tanzania.

In a rare and significant wildlife record, an ultra-rare leopard colour morph has been documented for the first time in Karnataka, in Vijayanagara district, by conservation biologist and expert on leopards, Sanjay Gubbi and his team from the Holématthi Nature Foundation (HNF).

Most leopards (Panthera pardus) possess tawny coats with black rosettes. However, this exceptionally rare colour morph exhibits a pale reddish-pink coat—resembling the hue of sandalwood—with light-brown rosettes.

“This genetically unusual colouration is believed to result from a genetic condition involving either an excess of red pigmentation or a deficiency of dark pigmentation. To give the morph a native identity and reflect Karnataka’s cultural heritage, Dr Sanjay Gubbi has named it the Sandalwood Leopard,” a statement by the Foundation noted.

It added that internationally, leopards of this colour morph are referred to as ‘Strawberry leopards’. Globally, such individuals have been sporadically recorded in South Africa and on a single occasion in Tanzania, with only a handful of documented cases worldwide.

In India, Sandalwood Leopards are extremely rare. A single individual was previously documented from the Ranakpur region of Rajasthan in November 2021, making the Vijayanagara record only the second confirmed documentation from the country.

The Sandalwood Leopard recorded in Vijayanagara district is a female, estimated to be 6-7 years old, and was documented through camera trapping. In one of the images, the female was photographed with a cub that displays normal coat colouration and black rosettes.

“This leopard is consistent with conditions such as hypomelanism or erythrism, both of which are naturally occurring genetic traits identified in wild mammals. At present, this assessment is based on photographic evidence and visual characteristics. While these features are distinctive, definitive confirmation of the exact genetic mechanism would require molecular analysis using DNA from non-invasive samples such as scat or hair. Until such genetic evidence is available, it is scientifically appropriate to describe this animal as a rare colour morph rather than assign a specific genetic condition,” the statement quoted Sanjay Gubbi as saying.

Another well-known leopard colour morph observed in India is the melanistic (black) leopard, which is far more frequently reported than the Sandalwood Leopard.

The documentation was carried out by the HNF team comprising Sanjay Gubbi, Sandesh Appu Naik, Shravan Suthar, Poornesha H.C., Ruma Kundarkar, Ravichandra Velip, Dayanand Mirashi, Sumit Velip, Aishwarya Karanth, and Mayur Mirashi.

Camera trapping was conducted as part of HNF’s ongoing efforts to estimate leopard populations and identify key landscapes for large mammal conservation in the Kalyana-Karnataka region. This region remains under-studied from a wildlife conservation perspective yet holds significant potential for conserving arid-zone species such as the Indian grey wolf, striped hyena, and Bengal fox.

HNF’s research indicates that Karnataka supports an estimated ~2,500 leopards. The Foundation’s work has also led to several important discoveries, including the first-ever documentation of the honey badger in the state, the white morph of wild dogs, and range extensions of chinkara, dhole, and brown mongoose, among other significant findings.

source/content: downtoearth.org (headlines edited)

Karnataka records highest-ever organ donations in 2025, ranks third nationally

Officials say increase was driven by the empanelment of more hospitals as non-retrieval organ transplant centres, including in tier-two cities, along with sustained awareness efforts.

Karnataka’s State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (SOTTO), the nodal agency that facilitates cadaver organ donations, has recorded 198 donations in 2025, the highest recorded in the State so far. This surpasses the previous peak of 178 donations in 2023. With this, Karnataka ranked third in the country in organ donations for the year, after Tamil Nadu with 267 donations, and Telangana with 205.

The steady rise in donations over the past five years reflects expanded hospital participation, growing awareness and improved systems, officials said. In 2024, the State recorded 168 donations, while the figure stood at 70 in 2021.

Principal Secretary (Health) Harsh Gupta told The Hindu that the increase was driven by the empanelment of more hospitals as non-retrieval organ transplant centres (NTHORCs), including in tier-two cities, along with sustained awareness efforts. “We are also felicitating donor families on January 26 and August 15 through the Chief Minister and Ministers, which has helped in building awareness and trust around organ donation,” he said.

Expansion plans

Mr. Gupta said the government now plans to expand the programme to taluk-level hospitals. “Doctors also need to be sensitised about declaring brain death. A lot more needs to be done. We are identifying where there is potential for donations and what the challenges are,” he said.

He pointed out that institutions such as NIMHANS see a significant number of cases where brain death could potentially be declared, but these opportunities are not being fully utilised. “This is a challenge. We had planned to place dedicated counsellors and earmark beds for potential brain-death cases, but these are not being used effectively. We will soon depute two dedicated grief counsellors there,” he said.

Tamil Nadu software

To improve transparency and efficiency, Karnataka SOTTO has adopted a software system already in use in Tamil Nadu. The platform tracks the entire process- from registration of patients, declaration of brain death to identification of eligible recipients from the waiting list and facilitation of transplants.

“Basic data entry has begun. Once a patient is registered, the queue system starts. All documents will be uploaded by hospitals and every step will be tracked online,” Mr. Gupta said.

Under the new system, once a donation is activated, alerts will be sent to the top 50 registered patients and empanelled hospitals. “Everything will be managed online and there will be transparency at every stage,” he said.

Cross-matching services

Karnataka has also decentralised cross-matching services, which earlier required patients to travel to Bengaluru.

The State has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bangalore Medical Services Trust (BMST) laboratory to provide cross-matching and HLA testing for eligible recipients in Mangaluru (Wenlock Hospital), Hubballi (KIMS), and Mysuru (K.R. Hospital). For each donation, the first five to 10 eligible patients will be called for matching, a process that takes five to six hours.

“Karnataka has considerable untapped potential for organ donation and the recent gains represent only a modest beginning. This trend now needs to be pushed much further,” Mr. Gupta added.

State missed 15 potential donations in 2025

Karnataka has missed 15 potential organ donations in 2025. This is mainly due to reluctance by families of potential donors and misconceptions surrounding organ donations.

Elaborating on the reasons, the officials said potential donations are missed sometimes because the identified donor is not fit to donate due to clinical reasons. Or, someone from the donor family/distant family/friends circle says no to organ donation and the next of kin do not have much say in taking a decision against the wish of those opposing it. Also, there are misconceptions surrounding organ donation.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

Karnataka’s Bhoomi project, a governance success

The project offers lessons for other States rushing to digitise land records.

For decades, access to land records was one of rural India’s most persistent governance failures. Karnataka’s Bhoomi project, now completing 25 years, offers an instructive counterpoint showing how administrative reform can reshape the relationship between governance and the people.

Until the late 1990s, land administration in Karnataka relied almost entirely on handwritten records maintained by village accountants. Farmers seeking a Record of Rights, Tenancy, and Crops (RTC) often had to repeatedly visit revenue offices, navigate complex procedures, and rely on intermediaries. Errors in records were common, and corrections took months. In an agrarian State where land disputes routinely spilt into civil courts, the costs of administrative inefficiency were borne disproportionately by small and marginal farmers.

Launched in 2000, Bhoomi was a bold departure from this legacy. Its immediate goal was simple: computerise land records and make them accessible. Its greater ambition was to replace discretion with rules, delay with timelines, and opacity with transparency. The legal recognition of computerised RTCs and the abolition of handwritten records marked a historic shift. Over the last 25 years, more than 39.8 crore RTCs have been issued, fundamentally altering how land records are accessed across the State.

Many revenue officials were initially hesitant to abandon familiar manual systems. Karnataka responded with large-scale capacity building, training nearly 9,000 village accountants, 8,000 revenue inspectors, and 1,000 computer operators. The establishment of 204 Bhoomi Kendras at the taluk level enabled the digitisation of nearly 2.5 crore land records covering about 3.5 crore farmers. What followed was not merely digitisation, but a cultural shift within the administration.

Initially, the Bhoomi project in Karnataka began as a modest effort to computerise only manual RTCs. But today, it functions as a comprehensive digital ecosystem that integrates land and revenue administration with multiple welfare services. The integration of Bhoomi with the Kaveri registration system changed the face of land registration in Karnataka. By linking registration with land records, the State sharply reduced fraudulent transactions and eliminated middlemen. Mutation, once a source of endless delay, became automatic and transparent. Survey and boundary disputes, another chronic problem, were addressed through the introduction of the Mojini (Survey) software in 2007. For the first time, land measurement and survey processes were brought under a digital, time-bound framework. The 11E Sketch, a pre-conversion map introduced by Karnataka, further improved accuracy in land boundaries and area measurement. The result has been a visible reduction in land-related disputes.

Bhoomi’s evolution also reflects Karnataka’s broader approach to governance: using administrative reform to strengthen welfare delivery. Since 2016, crop compensation has been credited directly to farmers’ bank accounts, bypassing intermediaries. During the 2018 loan waiver programme, Bhoomi data enabled the waiver of loans for nearly 20 lakh farmers. The integration with PM-Kisan, the Agriculture Department’s FRUITS platform, and Aadhaar seeding of over 2.17 crore farmer accounts has improved targeting and reduced leakages. By ensuring accurate and up-to-date records, Bhoomi has helped convert entitlement on paper into benefits on the ground.

Perhaps Bhoomi’s most significant achievement is not technological but experiential. Farmers no longer have to travel from village to taluk and taluk to district offices for routine services. The scope for discretionary abuse has narrowed. The relationship between citizens and the revenue administration has become more predictable. In a State where land remains emotionally and economically central, this shift has strengthened trust in public institutions.

As Karnataka reflects on Bhoomi at 25, the project offers lessons for other States rushing to digitise land records. Technology alone does not deliver reform. Bhoomi worked because it was embedded in administrative restructuring, legal change, and continuous institutional learning. It shows that digital governance succeeds when it is incremental, inclusive, and grounded in local realities.

Dr. Kumara IAS is Deputy Commissioner, Mandya District

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

Bengaluru Class 4 student Parinita B, enters India Book of Records as young author

Parinita sat with the editor as well as the illustrator to explain the kind of pictures required.

Parinita B, a 10-year-old from Bengaluru, has already earned a place in the India Book of Records as a young author. She is currently studying in Class 4 at NET Public School, Basavanagudi, and has authored a book titled ‘Tales by Pari’ published by Subbu Publications.

Her father, K Balaji, is a deputy general manager in BESCOM, and her mother, Dr Anusha R Gupta, is a dentist. Speaking to the TNIE, Balaji said, “We used to recite songs and children’s stories to Parinita, and that’s when she decided to write a story of her own. When she was eight years old, she started learning the meaning of different words and told us that she would write a book. I had told her to write at least 30 pages if it had to be published as a book of stories.”

He added, “She put all her efforts after school and started writing a book when she was 9 years old. However, when she completed writing it, we faced challenges in finding a publisher. Finally, Subbu Publications in Hubballi decided to publish the book. Parinita sat with the editor as well as the illustrator to explain the kind of pictures required.

We did not select pictures from the internet. They are all original and created by Parinita. A lot of children have bought the book and appreciated her work.”

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

Pulse Polio drive: Bengaluru records 95% coverage

The Pulse Polio Immunisation Programme recorded a significant number on its first day in Bengaluru, with more than 10.77 lakh children vaccinated against a target of 11,34,988, an overall coverage of about 95%.

The campaign, which was launched by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, was being carried out across all five city corporations- Bengaluru Central, West, East, South, and North. On the first day, the performance ranged between 94% and 98% across the corporations, with Bengaluru East recording the highest coverage of approximately 98%.

Vaccination efforts included booth-based immunisation, house-to-house visits, and transit vaccination at public locations. Transit points alone saw over 1.04 lakh children receiving oral polio drops, while a total of 66,798 oral polio vaccines vials were administered across the city. 

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences partners with State University of New York to boost engineering education and innovation

A key highlight of the partnership is the joint development of a BTech programme in VLSI Design and Technology at RUAS, aligned with SUNY Albany’s nanoscale engineering standards.

Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences (RUAS), Bengaluru, hosted a delegation from the University at Albany — State University of New York (SUNY), led by President Dr. Havidán Rodríguez on January 16.

The visit culminated in the signing of four Memoranda of Agreement, establishing a comprehensive India–US collaboration focused on engineering education, faculty and student exchange, joint capstone projects, curriculum co-design, and translational research in semiconductors, VLSI, nanotechnology, AI, and applied sciences.

A key highlight of the partnership is the joint development of a BTech programme in VLSI Design and Technology at RUAS, aligned with SUNY Albany’s nanoscale engineering standards.

RUAS Chairperson Dr. M. R. Jayaram emphasized that the collaboration aims at ‘co-creation of curricula, talent, and translational capability’ in line with national priorities.

Dr. Rodríguez reaffirmed University of Albany’s commitment to global, mission-driven partnerships. He also inaugurated the Dassault–Ramaiah Innovation Centre, which aims to strengthen industry-integrated learning and research.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

Gilli Nata wins Kannada Bigg Boss Season 12

Walks away with Rs. 50 lakh cash prize and a luxury car

Popular Kannada comedian Gilli Nata (Malavalli Nataraj) emerged as the winner of Bigg Boss Kannada Season 12.  The winner was announced by host and actor Kiccha Sudeepa last night.

As soon as the results were announced, his supporters in Malavalli and other towns burst crackers in celebration.

On the penultimate day of finale, Sudeepa had announced that the winner had received a staggering 37 crore votes considered to be an all-time record in the past 12 seasons.

Gilli walked away with a whopping Rs. 50 lakh cash prize and a brand new car.

Meanwhile, Rakshita Shetty, who emerged as the first runner-up, received a cash prize of Rs. 25 lakh and second runner-up Ashwini Gowda got Rs. 5 lakh cash prize.

Praying for Gilli’s victory several fans across the State performed special pujas at various temples. Some of the hotels had announced discounts on casting their votes to Gilli Nata.

Huge cut-outs were also placed across Mysuru and Mandya district wishing Gilli Nata to emerge victorious. Special LED screen was set up at Dadadapura, native village of Gilli in Mandya district, for the villagers to watch the telecast of the finale.

As soon as host Kiccha Sudeepa lifted Gilli’s hand as winner, the villagers jumped in joy shouting Gilli’s name and burst crackers.

Meanwhile, Bengaluru South Police had provided tight security outside Jolly Wood Studios in Bidadi as thousands of fans of Gilli and other finale contestants had assembled to cheer for their favourite contestants.

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)