Bill to drop Russians from Roerich Estate

A bill to omit the provision to provide representation to four Russian nationals on the Board of Trustees of Roerich and Devika Rani Roerich Estate Board was  tabled in the Assembly.

At present, the 15-member board is headed by the chief secretary and needs to have four nominees from Russia, including the Russian Ambassador in New Delhi.

The decision is in tune with HC orders that having members of other nationalities will affect country’s sovereignty.

SC/ST habitations
A bill that empowers the state government to use its discretion to declare SC/ST habitations in the state was tabled in the Assembly on Monday.

At present, the SC/ST population should be 40% or above to declare a village as SC/ST habitation. The Karnataka Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan and Tribal Sub-Plan (Planning, Allocation and Utilisation of Financial Resources) Act, 2013 proposes to remove the 40% stipulation and leaves it to the discretion of the government.