Karnataka Politics & Governance

Mangaluru railway area transferred to Mysuru Division

1 October 2026

From 1 October 2026, Mangaluru’s railway area came under South Western Railway’s Mysuru Division, having been transferred from Southern Railway’s Palakkad Division. The jurisdiction extends to Ullal, while Tokur remains under Konkan Railway; officials inspected stations and operational facilities after the change.

Karnataka seeks ₹7,142.64 crore in drought assistance

1 October 2026

Karnataka sought ₹7,142.64 crore in central drought assistance under National Disaster Response Fund norms, in letters from Deputy Chief Minister and Revenue Minister G. Parameshwara to Union ministers. The request covered two phases of drought declarations and included crop-input assistance, fodder and drinking water.

Automatic menstrual leave approval enabled for women government employees

5 October 2026

Karnataka made menstrual leave applications submitted through the Kartavya app automatically approvable for eligible women government employees. Employees aged 18–52 may take one paid day each month without a medical certificate or prior approval from a superior; unused leave cannot be carried forward or accumulated.

Karnataka puts revised Mojini land-survey fees on hold

5 October 2026

Karnataka put revised fees for land-survey applications under the Mojini system on hold, citing drought conditions and farmers’ financial pressures. The previous rates, in force before 1 October, will continue until further orders; the revised charges had been scheduled to take effect on that date.

Key Facts

• Mojini is the Revenue and Land Records Department’s system for receiving applications for different types of land measurement.

Cabinet approves Bengaluru police reorganisation and judicial digitisation project

6 October 2026

The Karnataka Cabinet approved reorganising Bengaluru’s police commissionerate into five units—East, West, North, South and Central—under a Chief Commissioner of Police. The proposed structure includes 1,022 new posts. The Cabinet also approved a ₹704-crore judicial digitisation project, including a data centre and disaster recovery centre for the judiciary.

Key Facts

• The proposed police reorganisation was presented as enabling more localised command and control.

Karnataka notifies reservations for Zilla and Taluk Panchayat seats

7 October 2026

Karnataka notified category-wise reservations for Zilla Panchayat and Taluk Panchayat member seats across all 31 districts, reserving 50% of seats for women. The notification covers 3,656 Taluk Panchayat seats, including 1,905 reserved for women, as well as seats reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and backward classes.

Key Facts

• Panchayati Raj Institutions support village self-government, rural development, social justice and implementation of government schemes.

Mangaluru prepares depots for 100 PM-eBus Sewa electric buses

8 October 2026

Mangaluru is preparing infrastructure for 100 electric buses under the PM-eBus Sewa scheme. KSRTC depot tenders for Kuntikana and Mudipu, each planned to accommodate 50 buses, had reached the financial-bid stage, while a separate tender process for charging stations was under way. The depots and related infrastructure were expected to be ready in six to eight months, after which the buses were expected to begin operating.

Key Facts

• PM-eBus Sewa is intended to provide the public with affordable, environmentally friendly transport.
• The report says these buses would operate through private-company contracts, with payments calculated per kilometre.

Karnataka High Court strikes down increase in SC and ST reservations

12 October 2026

The Karnataka High Court struck down Sections 3 and 4 of the state’s 2022 reservation law, which raised Scheduled Caste reservation from 15% to 17% and Scheduled Tribe reservation from 3% to 7%, taking the total quota to 56%. The division bench held that the state had not established exceptional grounds to exceed the 50% ceiling and had not consulted the national commissions before enacting the law.

Key Facts

• The High Court described consultation with the national SC and ST commissions on policies affecting those communities as constitutionally required.

Bengaluru court designated as Karnataka-wide NIA special court

12 October 2026

The Union Home Ministry designated Bengaluru’s 93rd Additional City Civil and Sessions Court as a special court for cases investigated by the National Investigation Agency. Its jurisdiction covers NIA-investigated cases across Karnataka, following consultation with the Karnataka High Court Chief Justice and the state government.

Key Facts

• The NIA is India’s principal counterterrorism investigative agency, operating under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• NIA special courts conduct trials of cases registered by the agency under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008.

Karnataka extends Gruha Jyothi ...