Blog

Voters in Mysuru and Mandya districts are confronting problems in the draft electoral roll, where three individuals from different constituencies found their ages listed three years older than their actual age despite providing Aadhaar and birth dates, and about 128,000 voters flagged as ‘no mapping’ or with logical anomalies must prove identity in the SIR process, with corrections due by Oct 25.

An election officer explained that voters can submit corrections until October 25 and that the required changes will be processed within that timeframe, while the root cause of the repeated age discrepancy and unmapped names will have to be investigated with the booth‑level officer who handled the original enumeration and data entry.

The three affected voters have each lodged Form 8 applications to have their ages corrected before the final electoral roll is published.

A booth‑level officer stated that the system relied on data from the year 2002 to compute voter ages, even though Aadhaar numbers and dates of birth were supplied in the enumeration forms.

C Venkatesh, the electoral registration officer for the NR assembly segment, said that individuals whose names do not appear in the draft list must file Form 6 to enrol as new voters, whereas those seeking to amend existing entries should submit Form 8; the Election Commission has simplified the procedure and provided multiple avenues for voters to rectify their records.

Three teachers revived Lakvalli government school in Mysuru, closed in 2012, by investing over Rs 3 lakh of personal funds. The effort was led by HB Anandamurthy, Geethamani and Asha, who upgraded the campus with smart and digital classrooms, a laboratory and a playground. Reopened on June 1 2014, the century‑old institution now enrolls 160 pupils and competes with nearby private schools.

The school, founded in 1917, had been shut in 2012 because of dwindling enrolment. When the teachers took on additional charge in 2014, they, together with local residents and former students, appealed to then‑MLA GH Srinivas to restore the institution, leading to its reopening.

The upgrades introduced smart and digital classrooms, educational software from Teach Next, a laboratory, a playground, an auditorium, drinking‑water facilities, toilets, a kitchen and a separate dining hall, which residents say match the amenities of private schools.

The school’s turnaround has earned parents’ confidence, prompting many to voluntarily register their children, and teachers anticipate further growth in admissions.

“Saving a govt school is not just about saving a building. It is like saving the future of thousands of children,” said Mohan, secretary of the Old Students’ Association, adding, “We are indebted to the teachers here. For us, the school is another home.” Deputy director for public instructions Thimmaraju credited the transformation to the teachers’ collective sense of responsibility.

Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar chaired a meeting at Shakti Bhavan on Race Course Road on September 3, 2026, to review preparations for the 2026 Mysuru Dasara. Officials discussed inviting all South Indian chief ministers and their art troupes, and adding an air show, drone display and new attractions such as a Chitra Santhe, flea market, vintage‑car rally and rangoli competition to raise the festival’s profile.

The meeting was attended by Urban Development and Mysuru District In‑charge Minister Dr. Yatindra Siddaramaiah, Chief Secretary Dr. Shalini Rajneesh, Mysuru District In‑charge Secretary Dr. Selvakumar, Kannada and Culture Secretary Manjushree, Youth Empowerment Principal Secretary Naveen Raj Singh, Urban Development Secretary B.B. Kaveri, Tourism Commissioner Ram Prasath Manohar, Mysuru Deputy Commissioner Lakshmikantha Reddy, Zilla Panchayat CEO Ukesh Kumar and Mysuru Police Commissioner Seema Latkar.

The chief minister will seek the Union Defence Minister’s approval for the air show and has asked the Army, Air Force and Navy to contribute teams for Dasara tableaux and parades, while also directing officials to provide adequate seating for ticket‑holding visitors.

Invitations are planned for ambassadors and foreign officials, as well as prominent bodies such as the Indian Armed Forces, leading Karnataka educational institutions, the Film Chamber of Commerce, ISRO, DRDO and other central government organisations.

One minister will be assigned each day to supervise the events alongside the district in‑charge minister to ensure smooth coordination.

The chief minister also ordered that art troupes from across Karnataka be given performance slots to showcase the state’s cultural diversity, and suggested producing short films on Mysuru Palace and other key tourist sites to further promote the festival and the city’s heritage.

Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) will restore Mysuru’s 140‑year‑old Dufferin Clock Tower, also called Chikka Gadiyara, using its corporate social responsibility funds. The effort aims to bring back the clock’s machinery and chimes, which have been silent for almost three decades, and return the historic landmark to working order.

HMT’s technical officers have already examined the tower’s internal mechanism, dismantling parts to assess condition; they reported that several essential components are missing while others are costly and hard to source. The company will supply available spare parts from its inventory at no charge, but the Mysuru City Corporation must procure any rare or expensive items. City Corporation Commissioner MK Savitha explained that the corporation will buy parts directly if the price is under ₹1 lakh, whereas costs above that level will trigger a tender process or seek additional CSR assistance, and a meeting at the Vani Vilas Water Works office has been set to prepare a detailed cost estimate. The restoration programme also envisions work on the 75‑foot‑tall Silver Jubilee Clock Tower opposite the Town Hall, erected on 8 August 1927 to mark the 25th year of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar’s reign. The Chikka Gadiyara itself was erected in 1886 during Maharaja Chamaraja Wodeyar’s rule to commemorate British Viceroy Lord Dufferin’s visit and to promote public punctuality; its design features intricate carvings, pillars and a fountain at the base, and marble plaques on all four sides bearing inscriptions in Sanskrit, Kannada, English and Persian.

A four‑week sericulture and silk‑industry training programme, organised under the Indian Technical and Economic Co‑operation (ITEC) scheme by the Central Silk Board (CSB), the International Sericulture Commission (ISC) and the Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI) in Mysuru, began on Friday and will run until September 30. It marks the eighth international CSB‑CSRTI training session, bringing the total number of participants trained to 188 from 27 countries, and this edition hosts 21 participants representing ten countries.

The delegations arrive from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Cuba, Ghana, Maldives, Mauritius, Nigeria, Philippines, Thailand and Zambia, with Cambodia, Maldives, Mauritius and Zambia attending for the first time. Participants come from various sericulture, agriculture and allied departments in their home nations, offering a range of experiences and perspectives.

CSB Member Secretary and Chief Executive Officer P. Sivakumar inaugurated the programme, urging attendees to maximise the learning opportunities and to present detailed overviews of their countries’ current sericulture status, five‑year targets and development plans. He highlighted India’s role in advancing sericultural research, including the development of high‑quality mulberry varieties, improved silkworm breeds and value‑added by‑products for sectors such as food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, and encouraged participants to consider ISC registration for technical support.

Director P. Deepa of CSRTI explained that the curriculum combines interactive classroom sessions, practical demonstrations and hands‑on modules, supplemented by field visits to farmers’ fields, cocoon markets, seed farms, chawki rearing centres and the Central Silk Technology Research Institute in Bengaluru, to give trainees a comprehensive view of the entire sericultural value chain.

The Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) is developing two more parks as Miyawaki forests in Rajivnagar, Mysuru.

MCC Commissioner M K Savitha formally launched the Miyawaki method of afforestation project on 1.75 acres of land covering the two parks on Thursday.

The MCC is planting 17,000 seedlings of about 42 species, including Albizia lebbeck (Baage), Tabebuia, Peltophorum and others, in the parks.

MCC Assistant Executive Engineer (Horticulture) P K Mohan Kumar said the parks are being developed under the MCC’s ‘Namma Mysuru Namma Koduge’ (Our Mysuru, Our Gift) programme with CSR funds from Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts. The company will plant the saplings, maintain them for three years at a cost of about Rs 65 lakh, and hand them over to the MCC. The MCC will provide the land and water.

The company had earlier planted 12,000 plants on 1.2 acres at a public park in Vijayanagar 3rd Stage, Hinkal Road, in September 2024. It also planted 15,000 saplings on 1.5 acres at Jodi Bevinamara Park in Dattagalli in August 2025.

The MCC has also developed another park using the same method. In March 2026, 15,000 seedlings were planted on 1.5 acres at Saalumarada Thimmakka Park in Dattagalli with CSR funds from Toyota Accessories Development ME India (TADME).

“Miyawaki forests are dense, green and visually appealing, enriched by seasonal fruits and flowers. While eight to nine trees are planted per 10 square metres during normal tree plantation, in the Miyawaki method, as many as 30 are planted per 10 square metres,” Mohan Kumar said.

There are 529 parks in Mysuru city, spread over 18 lakh square feet, of which about 290 have been developed.

Mohan said, “Most of the remaining parks have basic amenities like walking paths. All parks are fenced. Besides these five parks developed using the Miyawaki method, 11 parks have been adopted and are being maintained by private individuals under ‘Namma Mysuru-Namma Koduge’ (Our Mysuru, Our Gift). We hope that more people will join the green mission. Private individuals can either develop them as Miyawaki forests or develop them as parks, beautify and maintain them. They can even contribute funds under CSR. The MCC will maintain them.”

MCC Additional Deputy Commissioner Veena and TKAP MD Tabrez Ahmed attended the event.

The Vegan India Movement will hold an Animal Liberation March in Mysuru on September 5 to voice opposition to ‘speciesism’ and animal exploitation. According to Amjor Chandran of the movement, the first‑of‑its‑kind march will start at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday from the old Deputy Commissioner’s office and proceed to Mysuru Town Hall.

The organisers said there is an urgent need to “expand moral consideration beyond conventional pets like dogs and cats, or wild animals, to include all sentient beings,” and aim to raise awareness of systemic animal exploitation across industries while urging an end to consumption of meat, eggs, dairy and honey.

The statement highlighted “often‑hidden” practices in the dairy sector, such as routine artificial insemination of cows and buffaloes and the culling of male calves deemed unprofitable.

It also stressed that abandoning animal products does not compromise personal well‑being, citing extensive peer‑reviewed research that humans can thrive on a fully plant‑based diet, and drew parallels between speciesism and other discriminations like sexism, casteism and racism, urging that speciesism be dismantled.

Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar will invite the chief ministers of all southern states, including Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, to the Mysuru Dasara celebrations, an 11‑day festival that runs from October 11 to October 21 and will feature air shows, military tableaux, drone displays, a flea market and a vintage car race.

Reviewing preparations on Thursday, Shivakumar directed officials to organise the Dasara festivities in a new, grander manner and ordered immediate dispatch of invitation letters to the chief ministers of every southern state. He also instructed the district administration to arrange suitable facilities should any visiting chief minister attend the inauguration, the closing ceremony or any other event during the festival.

Shivakumar said he would discuss the proposal for an air show with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and asked officials to seek tableaux from the Air Force, Army and Navy, while ensuring priority seating for ticket‑holding visitors.

The meeting considered inviting representatives and officials from various countries, and confirmed plans for a flea market, a vintage car race and a possible drone show as part of the celebrations.

Present at the meeting were Minister for Urban Development and Mysuru district in‑charge Yathindra Siddaramaiah, Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, Mysuru district in‑charge secretary Selvakumar, Kannada and Culture Department Secretary Manjushree, Mysuru Police Commissioner Seema Latkar and other officials.

Mysuru court sentenced three men—Javeed Ahmad, Syed Mohammed Noorulla and Saddam Hussain—to 12 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1.25 lakh each for possessing 51 grams of MDMA seized from Mandi Mohalla, marking one of the highest sentences for drug peddlers in the city.

The VII Additional District and Sessions Court handed down the verdict after the trio was arrested by a Central Crime Branch (CCB) team in 2024 and booked under Section 22(c) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Section 22(c) of the NDPS Act addresses offences involving psychotropic substances in quantities classified as commercial, prescribing a minimum imprisonment of 10 years that can extend to 20 years and a fine ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh.

Police Commissioner Seema Latkar said the conviction demonstrates the importance of building strong evidence in narcotics cases and will send a strong message to those involved in the illegal drug trade. A CCB officer described Javeed Ahmad as a key figure in an illegal drug network with links to dealers in Bengaluru, noting that the team secured the conviction by collecting and presenting proper evidence.

Authorities believe the stringent punishment could act as a deterrent to individuals engaged in the sale and distribution of banned drugs, and the case comes amid continued police efforts to crack down on synthetic drugs and their supply networks in Mysuru.

Police also disclosed that Javeed Ahmad faces another pending case after being reportedly arrested recently for allegedly possessing 100 grams of synthetic drugs while out on bail.

The conviction and the ongoing actions against alleged drug network members underscore the city’s commitment to curb the circulation of narcotic and psychotropic substances, with officials emphasizing the need for effective investigation and evidence collection to ensure drug‑trafficking cases result in convictions.

Mysuru authorities announced on Thursday, 3 September 2026 at 01:48 pm that Plaster of Paris (PoP) Ganesha idols and chemical colours are banned ahead of the Ganesh festival to curb water‑body pollution. Only eco‑friendly clay idols will be allowed for immersion this year.